Star-Crossed
by Ruinous79
Summary: 2039 A.D.: 2000 humans set out on a forty year voyage to start a new colony in the distant Trappist-1 Star system. The Doctor encounters the colony shuttle just as its reaching its destination. Only something is very wrong. 3019 A.D.: River Song leads a rescue mission to find two lost research teams on an empty planet. What she finds instead sets her on a new mission...to the past.
1. Chapter 1

_Baldrine Spaceport, Isle of Man 2039A.D._

An ominous sky greeted Rhett and Leola Barber as they joined the queue forming outside of the impressive steel and glass structure. The gray clouds hung low in the sky. The air felt cool and damp. At 11:00 in the morning, it was shaping up to be a gloomy day.

The husband and wife were ages 27 and 24 respectively and had only just arrived on the Isle of Man that very morning. Unlike some of the gathering couples, the Barbers had a relatively short commute to Baldrine. They'd hopped a Scuttle Ferry from Southport and when they'd arrive in Douglas, set out on an old fashioned monorail to the site of the launch.

The journey from their hometown had taken them little more than three hours. Judging from the variety of accents and languages they now heard in the growing crowd, many had come from much further.

Leola clasped her husband's hand and made a nervous face.

"We're the lucky ones Lee Lee." Rhett reminded her. "Just remember that." He gave her hand a squeeze and smiled confidently.

Whether one believed in luck or not, there was no denying they were certainly among the chosen. The throng of people converging on Baldrine Spaceport from all over Earth numbered just two thousand. One thousand men and one thousand women, all of child bearing age, selected based upon set criteria to embark on an unprecedented colonization project.

Leola didn't respond but instead glanced around at the others who had been chosen. All couples, all without children, all between 21 and 30. Beyond those three parameters though, the people lined up seemed to represent every race, ethnicity and religious background.

Diversity in space. It was one of many familiar slogans that had come out for the Aquarius Epta Project. The Project, as it was often called, was a joint venture between twenty governments, facilitated mostly by the world's largest corporation, Carr Enterprises.

Leola had initially been bothered by the seemingly discriminatory nature of selecting the first generation for the colonies. She wondered how diverse a project could be if it was comprised of entirely cisgendered heterosexuals. Rhett had been quick to point out that the next generation most certainly wouldn't be. His assurances had brought a small measure of consolation but they did not make up for the fact that people like her best friends Shala and Morgan weren't welcome aboard what the media had dubbed the Trappist Ark.

The Trappist Ark project had been in the news nightly for a year. Unfortunately for all those ambitious journalists, the Project's launch date had somehow been kept a strict secret. In fact, a false date had been purposely leaked to the media several months ago. The subterfuge had evidently been successful as not a single news van or media representative had showed up to Baldrine on this gray morning.

The dark sky was showing signs of impending rain. Many members of the crowd milling about in front of the massive compound seemed to be watching the clouds, some clutching umbrellas in anticipation.

Leola shivered involuntarily and before she could say a word, her husband had removed his favorite olive green coat and placed it around her shoulders. She started to protest but the resolute look on Rhett's face stopped any such argument before it could form.

Instead she whispered, "Thank you babe." She knew it was no use trying to stop his chivalry. And she also knew there were far worse problems one could have with a husband.

"Hopefully they get us all in there before this sky opens up." Rhett commented suddenly, sounding uncharacteristically impatient.

"Wait a minute." Leola giggled, bumping into her husband's side. "Are you _nervous_?"

He smirked at her. "Of course not. I'm perfect."

Leola snorted her derision, a big smile lit up her pretty face for the first time today. "Keep telling yourself that Barber." she chided.

He put his arm around his wife and pulled her in for a side hug, kissing her affectionately on the top of her blonde head.

Just then, a male voice with an Australian accent came booming over a series of loudspeakers.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we'd like to welcome you at this time to make your way forward through the now-opened doors."

The conversation heard among the large gathering of men and women had been sparse up to this point but with the words of the Coordinator, an excited buzz settled on the crowd.

The Coordinator continued. "Just inside, you will be met by The Project's Guardians of Protection. You will need to have identification ready and submit to a rapid scan before being directed to your boarding gate."

"Whoa. Here we go." Leola breathed as she noticed the line beginning to advance. Adrenaline shot through her as they inched forward. She and Rhett didn't exchange a single word until they'd reached the doors and stepped inside the brightly lit atrium.

"Hmm." Rhett scoffed, sounding unimpressed. "Guardians of Protection?"

"Seriously." Leola murmured her agreement. "Looks like security at Heathrow to me."

She wasn't quite sure what she'd been expecting, but she couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed at the commonplace sight of people proffering their ID cards before passing through scanning equipment. All under the watchful eyes of some rather sinister looking Guardians.

At least the passengers were moved through fairly quickly. The Project seemed to be just as organized at this embarking stage as it had been since its inception. There had few setbacks and even fewer screening mishaps. Even the application and registration process had been seamless. If nothing else, this level of proficiency had inspired a certain level of confidence in Leola who was not only a pathological Type A personality but also a Chartered Accountant. She thrived on efficiency, symmetry and follow-through and didn't suffer fools gladly.

They got through the Guardians' post before they knew it and were ushered to a holding area along with about 200 other passengers by one of the Coordinators- easily recognizable by her mint green uniform. The redhead appeared to be around 30 and wore a nametag that read _I. Pendleton_. After a brief welcome and stewardess-style boarding procedures introduction, she handed them each boarding passes and pointed them down a long stainless steel corridor toward Gate D.

The newly formed subgroup marched silently down the narrow passage, not a soul speaking. It was as if the sudden possession of boarding passes had made it more real for everyone. Only the echoed sound of shoes squeaking and thudding on the waxed tile floor could be heard.

They turned a corner and saw they were entering the spaceport's equivalent of an airbridge- much like the enclosed movable walkways at an airport that lead to a passenger plane. Except this bridge led directly to the cabin doors of the Aquarius Epta Spacecraft.

When the group, with Leola and Rhett near the front, reached the sealed entrance, the doors slid open with a pneumatic hissing sound. The passengers were greeted by a rather surly looking Guardian and another smiling Coordinator, this one a blonde guy.

"Let's see those boarding passes folks!" the cheerful young man in mint green encouraged, like his disposition might somehow cancel out the scowl of the muscular guy in military garb to his right currently giving everyone the stink eye.

As Rhett handed over their boarding passes, the Coordinator nodded and said in a grandiose sort of way, "Welcome Mr. and Mrs. Barber, to your home for the next forty years."

* * *

 _The TARDIS, Rio De Janeiro 2080 A.D._

"So where to now Doctor?" Turlough asked, sounding somewhat despondent as he leaned against the console.

The Doctor glanced over at him, suspecting he might be a little sad having just said good bye to the young woman Rosa they'd met on their latest adventure. Interesting, seeing Turlough show such interest in a human.

The Doctor was already conveniently beginning to forget his own interactions with Ileana de Santos.

"I'm not quite sure." he told his companion, trying to sound upbeat as he flipped a switch on the console. "I imagine we can find something fascinating to occupy ourselves, somewhere in space and time." He squinted at the monitor and tapped some keys on the keyboard. "Ah. Here we are." He looked rather pleased with himself as he pulled up a program on the TARDIS computer.

Turlough wandered over, looking a bit cheered up at the prospect of an exciting new adventure. "What is that?" he inquired, peering over the blonde Time Lord's shoulder at the computer screen curiously. "I've not seen that application before."

"This is the TARDIS Chronology Database. It's been on the blink for decades but the software patch I applied a few days ago seems to have brought it back online." he explained. "We can search out a specific event in time and space and the TARDIS can take us right to it."

"Any event at all?" Turlough asked skeptically.

"Well," the Doctor corrected, "Any major event that I haven't already crossed on my timeline I should say. See here, it defaulted to the current year. 2080 A.D. It shows significant happenings all around the universe on this date."

Turlough began to read from the screen over his shoulder. " _Didonians appoint a new leader_. Ugh, politics."

"I've been to Dido about five hundred years in the future." He looked wistful, remembering. "But yes, politics can be awfully dull."

Turlough continued down the list. " _A cataclysmic asteroidal impact with the planet Arietes_. Sounds like we might want to avoid Arietes today." he scoffed.

"Hmm. Well." The Doctor was clearly disappointed the computer wasn't providing a better example of a fascinating event.

"Perhaps we should check on another date..." Turlough suggested.

"No! Wait just a moment. Here!" He pointed at the next event on the list and read out loud. " _Aquarius Epta Shuttle reaches the Trappist planets to begin colonization."_ He turned excitedly toward Turlough.

The redhead merely raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms, still unimpressed.

The Doctor gave his friend a look of disbelief at his disinterest. "Don't you see? It's the very beginning of a brand new civilization in another solar system. The very first time humans colonized in space. The Aquarius Epta spacecraft took a little over forty years at near light speed to reach the seven planets in the constellation of Aquarius. The 2000 original passengers aboard started a whole new generation en route." He turned back toward the computer and clicked on the incident. The program brought up a page full of information about the planetary system.

"Only 2000 humans sent to colonize seven planets? Seems a bit sparse, don't you think?" Turlough was still being difficult, but now the Doctor could see his interest had at last been captured.

The Doctor gestured to the information screen. "Of the seven planets orbiting the Trappist-1 star, only three were considered to be habitable, inside what astrobiologists refer to as the Circumstellar Habitable Zone. The three planets set for colonization were Elpida, Felix and Giannes. And besides, _all seven_ planets are tidally locked. Meaning that even of the _habitable_ planets, half the planet is always day, the other half night. It rather limits the livable area of the planet."

Turlough scratched the side of his face and nodded. "Have you ever been to any of those planets? Did the colonies thrive?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and grinned. "I never have made it to any of the Trappist planets. Always have been curious about those colonies though." He tilted his head in a challenging fashion. "Shall we?"

Turlough smiled at last. "Haven't anything better to do I suppose."

"That's the spirit." the Doctor encouraged. He tapped a few keys, then pulled the dematerialization lever. The engines wheezed and chuffed as the TARDIS whisked them away to a different place while remaining in time.

"So which of the three planets are we visiting?" Turlough wondered.

"Good question." the Doctor replied, looking sheepish. "And... one I _don't_ really have the answer to just yet."

The TARDIS engines began to make their customary rematerialization noise without a single hiccup or shudder. The Doctor tried not to look too surprised by the smooth landing as he flipped a switch to pull up the viewing scanner.

The screen showed a very dim room furnished with hundreds of shelves holding various supplies. There didn't appear to be any life around where they'd landed.

"Some type of storage facility?" Turlough murmured.

The Doctor squinted at the screen, deep in thought. "Perhaps." he replied.

"Only one way to find out." Turlough asserted as he activated the door lever.

The Doctor hesitated for just a moment before falling into step with his companion.

The TARDIS doors sprang open and the two travelers exited warily, watching all around them. The enormous room was rather dark and cool and did indeed appear to be some sort of storage structure.

They made their way toward the nearest shelving unit, seeking some clue as to their current location. The Doctor pulled a small torch from his pocket and they surveyed the shelves.

"These are food rations." Turlough pointed out. "And hydration packets as well." He walked to the next shelving unit. "And here are hygienic supplies. Soap and toothpaste... Definitely a storage facility." He rubbed at a spot of rust on a shelf. "A rather rundown storage facility." He amended.

"Interesting." the Doctor murmured, a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. "Turlough, I suspect I might be able to answer your question now. As to which planet we'll be visiting."

Turlough set down a foil wrapped packet he'd been reading and eyed the Doctor. "Which one?"

"Whichever one this spacecraft lands on first, I should think." he gestured to the first shelf Turlough had looked at. "These food rations and hydration packets are the type commonly stocked on board extended space flights."

Turlough's eyes widened. "You mean we're on board the colony shuttle?"

"So it would seem." The Doctor pulled his hat from his pocket, unrolled it and popped it on top of his head. "As you so eloquently stated only a few moments ago, there's just one way to find out." He stuck his hands into the pockets of his tan coat and strolled casually off in the direction of some double doors on the far end of the room.

Turlough made a sound in the back of his throat and followed. "Doctor, is it really such a good idea to go exploring the shuttle before it reaches its destination? I would imagine a stowaway would stick out like a sore thumb here."

When they reached the sealed doors, the Doctor turned and gave Turlough a half grin. "If that's your objection, we probably shouldn't bother at all. Our presence on any of the planets would be called into question just the same."

Turlough rolled his eyes. "Fine. But if we get captured _again,_ I'm going to seriously consider returning to Brendan Public School if we ever make it out alive."

The Doctor chuckled and pressed a button beside the doors to open them.

The doors whooshed open and the sudden onslaught of bright light coming from the well-lit corridor just on the other side left their unadjusted eyes blinking. The Doctor cut off the flashlight and stuck it back into his coat pocket. Things happened very quickly after that.

Just as they were about to step out into the corridor, two women came barreling around the corner from an intersecting corridor, as if being chased, and very nearly bowled them over.

"Hey! Careful now!" Turlough groused as the shorter of the two, a brunette of perhaps thirty, smacked directly into him. There was an awkward tangle of limbs and for a moment one would be forgiven for thinking they were dancing.

Her companion, a blonde around the same age, managed to put on the brakes before careening headlong into the Doctor. She stopped just short, toe to toe with the Time Lord and looked up, panic apparent on her pretty, if somewhat grimy features.

She uttered one word.

"Help."

The Doctor didn't think, just acted upon instinct. He grabbed the woman by the arm and pulled her quickly into the storage room, then reached back and pulled Turlough by the sleeve of his jacket. Turlough was yanked back into the room and the petite brunette, still tangled up with him, unwittingly came along for the ride.

"To the TARDIS!" the Doctor instructed as the doors closed automatically behind them. They rushed in and headed for the back of the large room.

The four of them hadn't quite made it to the blue box when the doors leading to the corridor sprang back open.

"I'm sure they came in here." a gruff male voice remarked from the door.

"No time!" Turlough whispered fiercely and gestured for the four of them to duck behind one of the large shelving units nearby.

As if by some unspoken decree, the foursome moved as one to hide in the near perfect darkness of a corner, mostly obscured by the towering shelves.

The Doctor peeked from behind the shelving framework and took in the two burly men dressed in security garb far across the dark room, struggling to turn on the overhead light which was clearly in need of maintenance (as was likely much of the forty year old ship)

The Doctor then glanced over at the girls curiously as they all huddled together silently in the dark. His eyes narrowed. They both looked exhausted and dirty, their hair mussed, their clothes wrinkled and worn. What type of trouble could the two women be in to warrant such a search party?

The blonde woman appeared a bit breathless and was looking at him in a suspicious manner, no doubt wondering where the two stowaways had come from. However, judging from the fact that she had been so quick to seek their help, she was obviously desperate enough to trust the complete strangers anyway.

"Brilliant. And neither of us with a torch." One of the guards muttered irritably. He took a few steps into the room. His voice lowered but was still audible to the group hiding. "Who knows if either of those bitches is armed."

The Doctor and Turlough shared identical looks- eyebrows raised, now even more intrigued by their new friends.

"Go to the outpost station in Section E and grab us a couple lights." The other guard replied in resignation. "I'll stand outside to make sure nobody leaves."

The two exited the poorly lit room back to the corridor.

As soon as the doors slid shut behind them, the short brunette hopped to her feet.

"Alright. Well who the hell are you two then?" She asked, obviously trying to sound tougher than she felt in the moment. Her quavering voice gave her away.

"I'm Turlough and this is the Doctor." Turlough replied, also climbing to his feet and looking down his nose at her. "We arrived here by mistake. Who are you two and why are you running from those police men?"

The blonde rolled her eyes as she stood up, dusting off the back of her trousers. "Those two?" she scoffed. "They aren't exactly _police_. They're called Guardians of Protection."

The Doctor stood last and tilted his head, not quite sure what to make of either of these two. "And what exactly do these _Guardians of Protection_ want with you? And why would they think you might be armed?"

The brunette had grown quiet. She was watching the door nervously.

The blonde stranger sighed. "We've been in hidin for weeks. But see... they caught sight of us this morning." She fidgeted with the sleeves of her worn olive green coat. "My sister and I are in a bit of trouble with them." She admitted, her blue eyes darted to the other young woman then back up to the Doctor.

"But it's not for some terrible crime." the brunette jumped in to reassure them. "We ain't thieves or murderers. Just... trouble makers."

"We've just kind of been stirring things up around here." the blonde sister explained. "Trying to spread awareness about what's really going on with the Project."

The Doctor sighed and gestured for the others to follow him to his ship. He was quietly thoughtful as he considered the women's words.

When they reached the doors of the TARDIS, he turned and seemed to take measure of the sisters. "And what really _is_ going on with the project?" He asked somewhat sternly, his arms crossed.

"The bastards killed our mum and dad." the brunette blurted despite a dirty look from her sister.

The Doctor's eyes softened, a look of compassion on his handsome face. "Right. Why don't the two of you come with us? We can keep you safe while we figure out what exactly is going on here." He stuck his key in the TARDIS door, but before turning the key, looked back over his shoulder at them and seemingly as an afterthought inquired. "What are your names?"

"We're the Barbers." the blonde girl answered gravely. "I'm Cadence Barber and this is my younger sister Haven."


	2. Chapter 2

_Constellation of Aquarius, 3019 A.D._

"Professor Song, I'm _really_ beginning to think this wasn't such a good idea."

Mackey's voice sounded uncertain, bordering on nervous.

River was barely listening to the pilot of the humble spacecraft called _Aphelion Silver_ as she scribbled a few notes in her diary.

She responded without lifting her eyes from the pages.

"I suppose it's good you aren't paid to think then." she countered brightly.

She finally looked up at the large, hirsute fellow manning the controls. He was turned almost completely around in the captain's seat regarding her with serious steel gray eyes. She could see from her vantage point in the cockpit through the bow's viewport and that they were in an orbital holding pattern.

Mackey was clearly hesitating to initiate landing procedures to put them down on the violet colored planet they were circling.

She sighed and closed the blue book. Her eyes were kind but her voice was stern. "Blaine. We've been over this."

He cleared his throat, struggling to keep the apprehension out of his voice. "Two teams." he reminded her. "Two teams- including several people we both know- in the past month have ventured to this system and simply disappeared." He shook his head and gestured to the radio panel. "The moment we came within one parsec of that bloody Trappist star, we lost all communications." He threw his hands up in exasperation. "We're completely on our own out here."

River shifted in her jumpseat and narrowed her eyes. "Captain Mackey, I am _aware_ of our situation. Just as I'm aware that this expedition is no longer simply about studying some dead planets." Her voice dropped an octave. "It's now a rescue mission."

She stood from her seat and unclipped a device from the belt of her black tactical pants. The device was a flat square tablet that featured a small screen and minimal input controls. Even now it was emitting a bleeping sound and the display was showing triangulation data.

River moved to sit in the copilot seat right next to Mackey and thrust the locator device into his line of sight.

"And we may have lost transmission with the base station but we still have _this_."

Mackey eyed the device, his features showing warring emotions.

River gauged his reaction before continuing softly. "The only way we will ever find out what happened to our colleagues is if we get down there and investigate." She tapped the viewport, indicating the purple planet below. "Both ships are there, _somewhere_. Somewhere on Giannes."

Static sounded over the ship's interior comm unit and the voice of Frank Lantieri interrupted them.

"Hey there Mackey. Me and the rest of the crew here were just wonderin when the hell you're gonna put us down on this rock."

River smirked. Lantieri was a bit of a smug bastard. But then, she never had been interested in him for his personality.

Mackey made a derisive sound, picked up the cockpit's intercom and addressed the crew of three in the passenger cabin. "Initiating landing now." He slammed the receiver down a bit harder than necessary and cut his eyes to River. "I sure the hell hope you know what you're getting us into."

River buckled herself in to the copilot seat and maintained a poker face.

She hoped so too.

Mackey managed to set them down smoothly very near the terminator line of Giannes, keeping the craft from being buffeted about by the harsh solar winds. It was an exquisite landing.

River hadn't chosen him for nothing. He was the very best.

He powered down the ship and hefted his considerable frame from the seat.

"Make sure your comm earpiece is turned on so we can stay in touch. And tell Booth to get the Rover ready." he instructed River, smoothing down his uniform. "Let's find our people."

She nodded and offered a gentle smile as she activated the tiny earpiece. "Excellent landing Captain."

He didn't smile but she saw the appreciation on his face just the same.

Her smile dissolved as soon as she turned away and headed for the cabin. Blaine Mackey was a good man. He was loyal and level headed and also a devoted single father to two teenage girls. She could only hope that she hadn't just talked him right into his impending death.

River activated the cockpit's airlock doors which slid open with a whoosh. She headed down the short blue lit corridor and passed through the galley which still smelled of the last batch of coffee. She considered the team she'd assembled for this mission.

Blaine Mackey was a pilot she'd known for decades and had traveled with on a dozen archaeological expeditions. Choosing him to convey them to the seven planets was a bit of a no-brainer. She trusted him with her life.

There was Frank Lantieri, little more than a hired gun who also happened to be River's flavor of the week. He was basically the muscles of the operation. Lantieri had seen his share of alien incursions and was awfully handy with a weapon. It took little persuasion on River's part to convince Frank's testosterone addled mind to join them.

The final two members of the crew were Olwen Booth and Eirenne Mercer, both fellow scientists, both brilliant in their own way.

Dr. Booth was an Aerospace Engineer as well as a gifted mechanic. He had personally designed the special Rover the team would use to traverse the surface of Giannes. Booth also had a personal stake in this mission. His brother Charles had been a member of the first research team that had never returned.

The stunning Professor Eirenne Mercer wasn't _just_ a pretty face. She was an actual genius who had graduated university at sixteen. She'd graduated with degrees in geology and astrophysics and had gone on to work for Torchwood for a time before starting her own institute on Extraterrestrial Studies. Mercer had spent her career convinced that the full story of the Trappist system had never been told. It was her institute that had initiated the two failed expeditions. She felt personally responsible for all sixteen lives on the lost teams. She had insisted on joining River's rescue mission.

Professor Song arrived in the small crew cabin as the threesome were gearing up to disembark.

"Booth, Captain Mackey says to get the Rover ready." she commanded.

"On it." he replied. He finished buckling his heavy jacket, placed a pair of sturdy eyeshields on his face, and gave a nod before heading off to the aft bay where the Rover was stored. Booth was on the short side with sandy colored hair and a matching moustache. His brown eyes were resolute if a little sad. He had been close to his brother. River genuinely hoped, that for his sake, they might find Charles alive.

Lantieri was already suited up and ready for action. He was leaning against an airlock door, fiddling with an enormous plasma gun, handling it like he might like to take it to bed. His heavy lidded brown eyes were sparkling and there was a look of satisfaction on his naturally tan, handsome face. This was the sort of thing he lived for.

Professor Mercer approached River, looking nervous.

"So what's the plan?" Mercer inquired. "Have we got a lock on anything? Anything at all?"

River removed the locator from her hip and passed it to Mercer. "Both ships are registering on this. We'll be able to tell more about lifeforms once Booth gets his equipment ready."

Mercer nodded thoughtfully, then caught River's eyes. "Are we going to find anybody alive?" Her voice was barely above a whisper.

River returned the troubled gaze. "Eirenne, if anyone survived, anyone at all, we will find them and we will bring them home." She was fully aware she hadn't really answered the question, but it was the best she could do.

"Ladies." Lantieri boomed, breaking into the intense moment. "Are you ready for this?" He stuck the plasma gun into a holder on his back and gave them both a cocky grin.

River granted him her best withering stare and seriously wondered what the hell she had ever seen in him. Just another boy wanting to play with guns. "Frank dear, why don't you go help Booth unload the Rover." she suggested crisply. " _Do_ try not to touch anything that you can't pronounce."

The look of confused embarrassment that crossed his face was priceless. He cleared his throat and headed off without another word to join Booth.

Mercer smiled for the first time as he departed. "That man genuinely doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground. I sure hope he'll serve more of a purpose than just eye candy."

River chuckled. "He knows his way around a gun and he's stupid enough to be damn near fearless." She shrugged. "One of my weaker moments I admit, but he could prove to be quite useful."

"Shall we then?" Mercer inquired, gesturing toward the aft.

The two women headed through the same corridor the others had exited through. They passed the sleeping quarters and a small medbay before coming to the utility chamber.

They entered through another airlock and were assaulted by the turbulent solar winds of Giannes. Mercer and River both removed their eyeshields from their sidepacks and placed them on their faces. The planet's atmosphere was nearly identical to earth as was the gravity so the eyeshields were fortunately the only protective equipment they'd need to adapt here.

The large double doors were open to the outside and they could see Booth and Lantieri lowering the ramp to set the Rover down on the planet's surface.

Booth climbed into the driver's seat and started the Rover up. The thrum of the engine echoed in the interior chamber of the bay. River strolled over and opened the passenger door, sliding in beside him.

"Come on then you two." she called out the window to Lantieri and Mercer. They both climbed into the backseat and Booth accelerated down the ramp. He pushed a button on a small remote and the ramp closed behind him.

The landscape was surreal to say the least. The surrounding planets were visible in the grayish sky. The Trappist star was orange in the center of the planets giving off daylight in the direction they were facing. Darkness framed _Aphelion Silver_ behind them. The sky off in that direction faded from a dark gray to an inky black- an entire half of the planet in perpetual darkness.

The surface itself didn't appear to be very rocky. The soil was violet in color and there was abundant plant life. Oddly shaped flowers and shrubs dotted the purplish ground. A small body of water could be seen in the near distance surrounded by silvery trees.

But so far, not a single structure built by man or machine was in sight. Not a sign of intelligent life. It was actually downright eerie.

"Is the Captain coming with?" Mercer queried in a strange voice from the backseat. The alarm she felt was evident. River could relate. It was one thing to theorize, to study and learn about something in the abstract. It was quite another to actually face it.

"Mackey will stay with the ship." she replied simply, then glanced over at Booth who was studying the onboard computer. "Anything yet Olwen?"

He looked up at her and informed her solemnly. "Already got some lifeform readings." He set his jaw and pointed to the monitor on the control panel between them. "Professor I think we're the only ones here." His voice sounded hollow, disbelieving.

River's felt her hearts sink as she looked over the results on the screen he was indicating. He was right. It appeared they were the only beings currently alive on Giannes. This was the very news she had been dreading. She nodded and suggested softly. "Why don't we head toward the nearest of the two expedition ships?"

No one in the Rover spoke as Booth headed toward the origin of the locator signal. They rode in silence like that for about ten kilometers over the seemingly empty planet before one of the lost ships came into sight. A ship without a sign of outward damage.

It was the ship from the first expedition, _Lady September._ River saw Booth's eyes well up as they pulled up to the quiet craft. The last time he'd seen his brother Charles, he had been boarding this very ship.

The lifeform detector showed no signs of life aboard the _Lady September_. The only positive aspect of that, in River's mind, was that meant no hostile lifeforms either.

"Let's see if we can get any information out of the ship's datacore." she suggested in a professional tone. "It's quite possible that all the answers we need are right here onboard." She opened the passenger door of the Rover and climbed out, her wild curls were thrown every which way from the violent winds. She didn't care. Despite the detached show she was putting on for the others, she was filled with anger and sadness. She knew all along the way this story might end. Inexplicably, she felt a surge of anger toward the Doctor in that moment. For having instilled optimism in her at all. Sometimes she really hated him.

And at the same time, she wished he was here with her. Because mostly, she quite loved the compassionate fool.

The foursome headed toward the spacecraft. River noticed immediately that the main airlock door was open and the entrance ramp was engaged.

She led the way up the ramp and pulled out a torch when she noticed the perfect darkness inside. She paused for a moment and glanced bath at Booth. She certainly hoped they weren't boarding a mass grave.

"Professor Song?" he asked, eyeing her curiously. Obviously he was wondering why she had stopped.

She just gave him a small grin and turned back to the task at hand.

As they entered the cabin, she saw three more lights come on behind her as the rest of the crew turned on their torches to navigate the dark ship.

First impressions revealed that there didn't appear to be any sign of a struggle. The interior of the craft appeared undamaged, as the exterior had. There was, however, one oddity that struck them all. Aside from seats and other furnishings, fixtures and controls, it was thoroughly and completely _empty_.

Even the sleeping quarters were completely devoid of any personal affects.

"Well where the hell is their shit?" Lantieri blurted, bluntly voicing everyone else's thoughts.

River sighed. "Surprisingly, coming from you, that's a good question."

Booth was shaking his head, shining his torch all around the cots. "Yeah this doesn't make sense, does it? They wouldn't have taken every ruddy thing with them, would they?"

Eight beds with eight pillows and eight blankets. But no other sign that a human had been here. Not a t-shirt or a book or a picture.

The sleeping quarters on _Aphelion Silver_ were full of personal belongings. Rucksacks and totebags full of clothes, toiletries and mementos.

Here there was nothing.

They continued their search, each of them now even more confused about what may have happened. Nothing was adding up.

When they reached the cockpit, River and Booth each grabbed seats at the instruments. River pulled a key-like device from her pocket and plugged it in to the panel.

Everything lit up immediately and the computer turned right on. She glanced at Booth who was squinting at the controls.

He flipped a couple switches, attempting to engage the thrusters. Nothing happened.

He made a noise of surprise. "All electric up and running. The computer seems utterly fine. But the drive system is somehow completely dead?"

"I just don't understand it." Mercer was muttering behind them. "This planet was colonized. There should be buildings and cities here. There should be an infrastructure. Even if it was a failed society, there should be some trace of _something._ I mean... I knew something was wrong here but it appears that every single thing Earth was ever told about that bloody Aquarius Epta project was a huge fucking lie."

River's eyebrows went up when she heard the normally stoic Dr. Mercer cursing like that. But she was right. Nothing seemed to be matching the stories they'd all heard about this place, about the alleged history. About the three colony planets. About the generation ship that started a whole new civilization in space. A civilization the research teams came here intending to study.

So far they'd found nothing. Less than nothing.

Booth had been busy running a program from a small thumb drive he'd brought with him. They were hoping to recover the flight data recorder as well as any security footage from the craft.

"And here we go." Booth remarked, sounding somewhat relieved. He tapped a few keys and the computer began to download the requested data onto the thumb drive.

Suddenly River heard white noise in her ear.

"Professor Song..."

Mackey's voice, doused in panic came as a staticky hiss down River's comm earpiece.

"Mackey?" River held up a finger to silence Booth who was muttering about how long the data dump was taking.

"River...in trouble...things...on board." The transmission was breaking up but that Mackey was in trouble was becoming abundantly clear.

"Blaine, you're breaking up! What's the trouble? _Who_ is on board?" The others had gathered around River now, alerted to the problem by her tone. They all stood waiting anxiously to find out what was going down.

"I don't...something's coming...danger." River felt adrenaline shoot through her system at his last word and wished to hell she could understand all of what Captain Mackey was trying to tell her. Every other word was shot through with static. Pops and hisses were concealing all but the gravity of the situation.

Only two more words came over the comm unit before it went dead.

"They're here." Followed by total radio silence.

River gasped. "Blaine? Blaine!"

"Professor Song...what is it? What's wrong?" Mercer's concern was palpable.

River's eyes were wide and her voice was shaking.

"We need to get back tothe Captain _right now_." she blurted. "Booth. The Rover."

She turned and quickly headed down the corridor, out the door and down the ramp barely noticing if the others were following.

The feeling of horror was practically asphyxiating her. She kept thinking of Blaine's daughters, Sara and Ava. He was all they had.

She was relieved to see the others were right behind her when she climbed in to the Rover but she felt sure they couldn't get to Mackey fast enough. She sensed imminent death. She was practically certain of it. And she was just as certain there was nothing any of them would be able to do about it.

Booth practically tripled the speed of the Rover heading back to _Aphelion Silver_. Despite the much shorter drive, it seemed to take forever.

River was out of the vehicle before it came to a complete stop and to his credit, Lantieri was three steps ahead of her, his plasma weapon already drawn.

She drew her own weapon as the two of them hurried wordlessly toward the craft.

When they reached the ramp leading up to the entrance, she hesitated, then cut her eyes to Frank. "I have the strongest feeling that _something_ is still in there."

His voice was earnest and his eyes focused on the silent ship in front of them when he answered. "Yes ma'am. I get the very same feeling."


	3. Chapter 3

_TARDIS, Aquarius Epta Storage Hold, 2080 A.D._

Cadence hadn't touched any of the food they'd set before her. She seemed to be more interested in the cup of tea, though she hadn't taken a single sip. Instead she seemed to be drawing warmth from the mug. She looked like she needed it as she sat across from the Doctor, shivering slightly and looking down at the wooden table in the small kitchenette.

"You're certain the Guardians of Protection can't get to us?" Her voice sounded more tired than afraid.

The Doctor regarded her with kind eyes. "My ship is cloaked." he explained again. "No one can find you here."

Cadence still didn't look up from the table. Her eyes closed and she seemed to let out a breath she'd been holding for years. "Thank you." She said after a time. "Thank you for helping us hide." The Doctor thought she sounded uncomfortable expressing her gratitude. Like maybe she'd never had cause to do so before now.

Her sister Haven hadn't been interested in tea once she'd learned she had an opportunity to take a shower. She jumped at the chance like it might be her last. Turlough had taken her back through the corridors to show her to one of the bedrooms with a private bath.

The Doctor realized that it must have been quite a while since either young woman had any such creature comforts. It was obvious they'd been living rough in hiding. They both looked they'd been wearing the same dirty clothes for some time. They also looked awfully thin, like they weren't eating regularly. He felt sympathy for them, but he was also still waiting to hear the whole story. In all his travels, in all he'd read and heard, he'd never heard of anything sinister having taken place within the Aquarius Epta project.

He cleared his throat. "It's my pleasure to be of help to you and Haven. It's fairly clear that the two of you feel you are in some kind of danger." He paused until she finally looked up and met his eyes. "Won't you tell me about it?"

Cadence leveled her big blue eyes at him and after an extended silence, whispered, "It's all a lie."

The Doctor blinked a few times and he felt a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach at the certainty in her words. "Can you elaborate on that?" he asked.

Cadence finally took a sip from her mug of tea before answering. "They've lied to all of us. About Earth. About what happened to our parents, to the first generation." A profound sadness seemed to engulf her. It did something to her voice. "The truth is, we were raised on falsehoods. To the point where I can barely tell what's real and what's not anymore."

She made a sound of frustration and raked a hand through her short, blonde hair.

The Doctor watched her, not sensing any deception on her part but still confused by the vagueness of it all. "How did you come to find out the truth? And..." he paused, striving to be tactful. "What exactly _did_ happen to the first generation? To your parents..."

Cadence fidgeted with the sleeves of the threadworn, green coat. "My mum. Her name was Leola." She smiled sadly. "I don't remember her. I only know her from pictures. And this."

She reached into an interior pocket of the coat and came up with a mobile device. "It's her digital chronicle. It's her voice on here, telling her story." Cadence explained. "She kept it from the day she and my dad first boarded Aquarius Epta. She kept it a secret somehow. From the Coordinators. Otherwise I'm sure it would have never got to me. In it she talks about their life before. All about their time together on earth." Her eyes grew dark. "And all about what happened to them once they were on board."

The Doctor nodded, encouraging her to continue.

She handled the device delicately in her hands, like it was made of porcelain rather than a sturdy metal. "All of the second generation were told that our parents died from a disease that spread all over the ship. That we were only spared because we were quarantined." Her face became defiant and she held up the device. "But I know better. Because mum _knew_ they were up to something. She _knew_ what they intended to do." Her voice went cold when she concluded, "But nobody would believe her."

The Doctor was horrified by the woman's claims. The entire first generation of the Aquarius Epta Project massacred?

Turlough entered the small kitchenette just then, his expression troubled. The Doctor didn't have to guess why.

"Has she told you?" Turlough demanded of the Doctor, his voice disgusted. "Has she told you what's going on here?"

He sat down in the chair beside the Doctor, shaking his head.

The Doctor sighed. "I take it Haven filled you in on a few key points?"

The strange young man raised his spiky eyebrows. "Among other things. She said that the entire first generation of passengers were killed and that all the children were _raised_ by these Coordinator people." Turlough looked angry. With all he had seen in time and space, Vislor Turlough still seemed endlessly astonished at the capacity for evil in human beings.

The Doctor leaned toward Cadence, his arms folded on the table. "Did you mother ever say who's behind all this? What they want with all of you? What's to happen to everyone else?"

Cadence shook her head, almost imperceptibly. "She didn't know much. Hell, she never had the chance to find out. She only knew that she and the other original passengers were never meant to make it to the Trappist planets. And her digital chronicle entry about what she'd learned was her last. She overheard a conversation between two of the coordinators who weren't being very discreet. They were discussing all the favorable aspects of _doing away with_ what they called Gen 1." She set the device on the table gently. "Would you like to hear?"

The Doctor gestured for her to play the recording and while she fiddled with the controls on the device, he and Turlough exchanged a look. He didn't need to bother with his telepathy to know they were thinking much the same thing. _What had they gotten themselves in for here_?

A woman's voice, whispery and noticeably scared. " _Digital chronicle of Leola Jae Barber. Twenty seven March of two thousand and forty six._ " A shaky breath. " _I just heard something. Something I wasn't meant to hear. I was searching the nursery closet for some more nappies for Haven. The door shut almost completely behind me as I rummaged around inside and two Coordinators entered the nursery behind me, obviously not aware of my presence_." She sighed and seemed to be trying to gather herself. " _It was that vile woman Isabelle Pendleton and the cocky Australian, Jonas Newbury. I didn't hear the first part of the conversation and I very nearly made myself known. But then... then I heard something that stopped me in my tracks. I heard Isabelle say to Jonas, 'We'll all be much better off once we've done away with the lot of Gen 1. It's the only way to keep their damn mouths shut about everything_.'" Leola uttered a nervous chuckle of disbelief. " _I thought she must be joking at first. Or that I misheard. But then Jonas replied. 'It's not like there's room for all of us anyway. This ship was never intended to house two generations long term. And don't get me started on the shortage of supplies_.'"

The Doctor and Turlough exchanged an incredulous look.

Leola's voice on the recording became angry for the first time. " _Of course Rhett says I must be mistaken. That they were only havin a laugh._ " She scoffed. _"He doesn't believe me about anything at all though does he? He sure as shit didn't believe me when I told him what that bastard Coordinator did to me last year in the canteen. I feel I don't even know him anymore._ " The woman's contempt for her husband was palpable. " _But this. I must find someone to believe me. Because I'm frightened._ "

Cadence pressed a button on the device to turn it off. A silence fell over the room. The Doctor was the one to break it.

"Turlough, perhaps you should go check on Haven. She might get lost in the corridors trying to find her way back."

Turlough looked inexplicably uncomfortable at the suggestion. "Doctor, maybe _you_ should go fetch her. I'm not sure it's such a good idea for me to do so."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "Well why ever not?" he asked his companion.

Turlough's evident discomfort grew and he cut his eyes to Cadence, cleared his throat. "It's just that she... well... you see..."

The Doctor rolled his eyes and stood. "Never mind." he said grumpily. "Cadence, would you like to go get freshened up as well? I'll be happy to take you back." He frowned at Turlough and headed for the door.

Cadence stood to follow.

The Doctor turned back and asked "Which room did you put Haven in?"

Turlough had stood and was chewing on his bottom lip, his arms crossed. "Tegan's old room." he answered nervously. "Doctor, maybe you and I should have a word-"

"I'll be back in just a moment." The Doctor interrupted, still annoyed at Turlough's refusal. "Why don't you clear away the tea, hmm?"

* * *

Haven felt like a new woman. The shower had felt absolutely fantastic. Since she and her sister had been in hiding, they hadn't been able to do much more than clean themselves with rags and water. They had been filthy and stinking in the same clothes for nearly three weeks.

It felt nearly sinful to stand under the spray of the hot water, shampoo her hair and soap herself up. She was even more delighted to find fresh clean clothes waiting for her on the bed of the lovely bedroom. That strange young man Turlough must have set them out for her.

As she toweled off, she thought about the two strangers who had come to their rescue. Time travelers they'd said. It had occurred to her that they could be lying. After all, she'd recently learned that she'd been living a lie for all of her thirty four years.

But she also felt there was something very different about the two men they'd met outside the supply cupboard. Frankly, she'd never met anyone like them. She got dressed thinking about how kind and gentle the two men seemed.

As for the other males of her generation, they spent such little time around each other, she couldn't really speak to their characters. Beyond polite small talk on the occasions they were around each other, the males of her generation didn't show much interest in the females. The men and women of Aquarius Epta were segregated most of the time. So the majority of Haven's interactions with the opposite sex involved the arrogant Coordinators and gruff Guardians. And she had been raised, as all other women of Gen 2, to do as they said, make them happy and never question any of their requests or demands.

She checked herself out in the bathroom mirror as she attempted to detangle her long brown hair with a comb. The outfit she'd put on was casual. Comfortable denim pants that fit her petite figure perfectly and a long sleeved v neck t-shirt. She thought she looked pretty good. She paused with her combing and studied herself more closely. She wondered why Turlough had looked so freaked out when she'd removed her clothes in front of him. Not only did he not lay a hand on her, he actually backed away from her like she was on fire. Perhaps he didn't like what he saw?

Since she'd been a young teen, she'd grown accustomed to the unwanted advances of every man she encountered. It was perfectly normal to her to have the Coordinators touch her whenever they wanted, to do with her as they pleased. Occasionally a bold Guardian would get her alone in a dark room and have their way with her. It was frowned upon but she didn't exactly have anyone she could talk to about it besides her sister. Sex was just what it was. Unwelcome, inconvenient and sometimes painful. She'd never enjoyed it.

She wondered why it should bother her that Turlough was obviously uninterested in her in that way.

There was a light tapping on the door and she spun around, startled.

"It's the Doctor and Cadence." The Doctor's muffled voice called from the other side of the door. She wondered why he'd tapped on the door and announced himself like that. Privacy wasn't something she knew much about.

She walked over and opened the door. She noticed that her sister was giving the Doctor a strange look as they entered the bedroom like maybe she was wondering about the formality as well.

"Hey, look at you." Cadence enthused, smiling. "All fresh and clean. You look amazing!" She tugged at Haven's hair playfully.

The Doctor grinned at her as well and nodded. "You look like you're feeling a bit better." His kindness was both genuine and disconcerting. "I figured your sister might like a chance to wash up as well."

Haven smiled back at him uncertainly. "Well, thank you. I do feel better." She tried to size up the situation, wondering if he had come to the bedroom with expectations. And if so, did those expectations involve both Cadence and herself, or was Haven supposed to leave the two of them alone together?

He answered her unasked questions cheerfully. "Why don't we leave Cadence to herself and go get you something to eat?" He gestured to the door.

She blinked, confused.

He looked puzzled at her reaction. "Unless you'd like to have a rest? You're welcome to take a nap on the bed there."

She didn't answer, mostly because suddenly the Doctor's kind blue eyes had grown into the size of saucers, apparently at what he was seeing over her left shoulder. He turned his back abruptly and stammered, "R-r-right, I'll just be out in the hallway then." He left the room quickly and closed the door behind him.

Haven turned and saw that her sister had undressed and was smirking at the closed door, amused. "You'd think he'd never seen a naked woman before." she said.

Haven chuckled. "Perhaps Turlough never had either. He reacted much the same way to me."

If she was honest, she felt a bit better that Cadence had received a similar reaction.

Suddenly, realization seemed to dawn on Cadence's face. "Ohh. Two men, traveling alone together. Perhaps they don't like females."

Of course. Haven hadn't even considered the possibility that they might be homosexual. She knew of several men of her generation that were. Cadence herself was attracted to other women. It all made sense now. And Haven suddenly felt much safer. If a bit disappointed for some odd reason.

"I guess I'm going to have tea." She told her sister. "The shower is wonderful. Enjoy."

She headed out to the hallway where the Doctor was leaning against the opposite wall, a hand to his head.

He looked up, his eyes troubled. "Is that _normal_ for you and your sister?" he asked her, sounding incredulous.

Haven tilted her head. "What do you mean?"

"Just taking your clothes off in front of strange men like that?" He sounded disapproving, which confused Haven even more.

"Is it normal? Why wouldn't it be normal?" she wondered, crossing her arms and regarding him curiously.

A look of surprise crossed his face, followed by something like pity. He immediately dropped it.

"Why don't we head to the kitchen now?" he suggested gently.

She found his change in demeanor bizarre. Why the hell should he feel pity toward them?

They walked in silence through the stark, white corridor for a time. Haven's mind was racing, trying to work out what exactly she was missing.

"Your sister showed me your mother's digital chronicle device." He told her suddenly.

She nodded, relieved by the change in subject. "Yeah. That's what started all this trouble."

The Doctor stopped walking for a moment and looked at her seriously. "The one thing I'm still rather puzzled about is how exactly she came by this device all these years later. I got the impression that the two of you only learned of its existence a few weeks ago."

Haven raised her eyebrows. "Yes, that's the strange bit."

"What do you mean?" he asked. "How did she come by it?"

"I was actually the one that showed it to her." Haven explained, remembering that surreal day. "Some woman neither of us had seen before gave it to me."

The Doctor looked intrigued. "You mean to tell me someone else on this ship knew about it? Was she one of the passengers from your generation?"

Haven shook her head emphatically. "No. And I don't believe she was a Coordinator either. As I said, I'd never laid eyes on her before. And I haven't since."

The Doctor's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Well how can that be? What did she say to you?"

Haven shrugged, her brown eyes drifting off as she remembered. "She was sweet. The sweetest woman I've ever met." She shook her head, still perplexed by the encounter. "It was she like she _knew_ me or something. Like she cared. She gave me the device and told me to keep it hidden. She said 'All is not as it seems and there is danger where you are going'. Of course I had a million questions but she was in a hurry. She said something about wishing she could help us now but that she couldn't interfere further until we'd made it to where we were going. That she'd find us- Cadence and me- on Giannes."

The Doctor looked positively staggered by this news. "Who was this woman? Did she give you a name?"

Haven nodded. "She said her name is River. River Song."


	4. Chapter 4

_Giannes, 3019 A.D._

River had set the accelerator so that the Rover was moving along at break neck speed. She was practically blind with panic, driving wildly over the rough terrain of the alien planet. In truth, she had no real destination in mind when she set off. Her only goal was to get as far away from those _things_ as possible.

Her mind was racing with what had just taken place. She had just seen her entire crew taken out by some type of android machines. She was still trying to make sense of it all.

The robot creatures had been humanoid in both their shape and movements. But the cold, calculating way in which they'd dispatched each and every person but River had been one of the single most terrifying things she'd ever witnessed. And this coming from someone who'd traveled with the Doctor.

The androids had not wanted to negotiate. They had not taken any prisoners. They had not wanted anything at all from them. They hadn't even spoken a word. They'd simply fired their weapons. When shot, the victim just seemed to blink out of existence. There was no body, no blood. Just... gone.

There were only a couple kinds of technology to River's knowledge that could end a being in such a manner. The weapons must have had either anti-matter or molecular dispersal properties.

It had all started with Frank and herself entering _Aphelion Silver_ , guns drawn. They headed directly toward the cockpit to find it empty. No trace of Captain Mackey to be found.

The feeling she'd had back at the entrance ramp, of something malevolent being nearby persisted as they moved silently through the ship.

It was in the galley that they'd encountered the two single-minded droids. The robot creatures had simply turned and fired. And just like that, Frank Lantieri was gone.

River was stunned to slowly discover she had somehow been spared.

She had felt the energy from the gun as it made contact with her torso. It very nearly caused her to void the contents of her bladder. It did cause her to drop her weapon. She was numbly aware of the clattering sound it made when it hit the floor of the galley. Then nothing. No injury, no pain. Lantieri was gone, the androids' weapons appeared to be smoking a bit, and she was still standing there.

At least, she was until she gathered her wits and ran like hell back the way she'd came.

The droids had been right behind her, firing continually. She ran down the ramp yelling for the remaining two crew members to take cover.

But it didn't take long for the droids to kill them as well.

Right before her eyes. Dr. Olwen Booth. Professor Eirenne Mercer. Gone.

She had no remaining option but to get herself out of there in the Rover. Absurdly, she felt as if she was committing theft as she made her escape. But she would later come to realize that the knee jerk reaction had nothing to do with Grand Theft Rover. It was simply survivor's guilt she was experiencing.

River had no idea how much time had passed before she finally realized that nobody was chasing her. Or precisely how long she'd been driving into ever increasing darkness. Fortunately, the headlights on the Rover were both automatic and very effective so she wasn't having any visibility issues. There was, however, the issue of being alone and lost on an _almost_ empty planet with very few supplies or resources at her disposal.

She slowed the vehicle to a stop to get her bearings.

There was no telling how far she had driven. She knew she was now on the side of the planet facing away from the Trappist star. Her guess was she'd been driving for around an hour at max speed. She suspected she'd covered quite a lot of ground.

River took a deep breath to calm herself and did what she always did in times of emotional distress. She tucked her emotions away somewhere and switched to the reasoning part of her mind.

"Alright Professor. Let's take stock, shall we?" Her voice sounded husky and odd as she spoke out loud to herself. Yet it was somehow comforting at the same time.

She reached for her side pack and rifled through it, listing her assets as she went.

"Let's see... perhaps a week's worth of food and hydration packets, one emergency blanket, one Digiflare signalling device- well that's useless- one box of Promethean everlasting matches, two torches and one vortex manipulator badly in need of charging."

She heaved a resigned sigh and closed her bag.

"So to sum up, I'm on a tidally locked planet approximately 40 light years away from any known civilization with no ship, no crew, no communications device, with about a week's worth of rations, murderous androids wandering about and no weapon." She chuckled a bit. "This should be fun."

Now if she could figure out her next move.

First she had to shake the question gnawing at her mind: why hadn't the androids' weapons harmed her? She had been hit five or six times by the powerful beams of energy. She examined a spot on her arm where she'd been hit and even unbuckled and unbuttoned and pulled up her top to take a look at the spot just below her breasts where she'd been hit by the first blast.

Not a welt, not a red mark. No trace of injury.

Perhaps it had something to do with her being part Time Lord. Apparently the weapons that had such devastating effects on humans were no match for her physiology.

She supposed she should feel grateful. Instead, she only felt guilt.

The look of horror that had crossed Eirenne's face when she was blasted with the energy weapon flashed in her mind.

River shook her head and set her jaw.

Survival. She had to survive first.

She figured her best bet would be to keep moving. No sense in being a sitting duck for those android fellows.

She started the Rover back up and just drove, still not sure where on Giannes she might end up.

"Sure would be handy to have a fully charged vortex manipulator about now." she grumbled.

The words had no sooner left her lips when something occurred to her.

She yanked the homing device off of her belt and flipped it on.

It began to audibly bleep, once more showing the triangulation data of the two lost ships they'd come here to find. She immediately changed course with the Rover and headed in the direction of the nearest of the two locator signals.

" _Lady September_ still had full electrical power." she said out loud breathlessly, feeling hope for the first time since she'd received Blaine Mackey's distress transmission. "It's safe to assume the other ship will as well. I can charge the vortex manipulator using the power source in either ship."

She increased speed, glancing once more at the device. She was still traveling on the perpetually night side of the planet, seeming to run parallel to the terminator line. She suspected she was headed for the other ship that the crew had never reached, _Penumbra._

This part of the landscape was quite a bit hillier so she had to pay extra close attention to where she was heading. Between maneuvering the Rover and keeping an eye on the homing device, River very nearly missed the large, shadowy object off to her right, sunk into the side of a mountain.

River's eyes narrowed as she noticed the gigantic shape in her peripheral vision. She hit the brakes and brought the Rover to a stop.

She turned in her seat trying to understand what she was seeing.

Her eyes widened and she gasped.

She immediately grabbed her side pack and emptied the contents into the passenger seat beside her. She snatched one of the torches up and quickly exited the vehicle.

The temperature on this part of the planet was quite a bit colder. She shivered as she switched on her torch and aimed it at the shadowy form.

River couldn't quite believe it but she was _certain_ she was right.

The archaeologist in her had kicked in. _Penumbra_ would just have to wait.

For there, almost embedded into the side of a mountain after nearly a thousand years of sedimentary erosion and metallic corrosion was what was left of the _Aquarius Epta_ ship.

* * *

 _TARDIS, Aquarius Epta Storage Hold, 2080 A.D._

The Doctor was pacing the console room. The Barbers were safely tucked into Tegan's old bed, hopefully getting a good night's sleep. Turlough had headed to bed an hour before. But the Doctor remained, a million thoughts racing through his mind.

It seemed everything he'd always thought he'd known about the Aquarius Epta Project had been a lie. Obviously the aims of the project had been far more nefarious than simple colonization all along. But who was behind it? What was the motive? What was meant to happen to the second generation of passengers?

And who was this River Song person? A woman who had no business on this ship. A woman bringing a message from the past with far too much knowledge about the future. He had a sinking suspicion she might be a time traveler- a time traveler who was playing with fire, meddling in such significant historical events.

The irony of his judgments was completely lost on him.

Turlough entered just then from the corridor looking slightly mussed. Apparently the turmoil of the day had left him restless as well.

"Couldn't sleep I take it?" The Doctor guessed.

Turlough sank into the nearest jumpseat looking grumpy. "Not a chance. This whole situation is unbelievable." He yawned and shook his head. "Can you imagine? What those girls have endured their whole lives?" He looked disgusted.

The Doctor set his jaw angrily, remembering what had happened earlier in the bedroom. "Yes, well." he replied at length, still troubled by the look of innocent confusion on Haven's face when he'd attempted to scold her about their lack of decency. It was evident that these women had never been taught about privacy or modesty. He dared not wonder what they'd been taught instead.

Turlough voiced what he himself had been thinking. "It seems to me that these Coordinator characters are right nasty bastards and have taken advantage of these people since they were small children. I would swear Haven looked as though she expected me to... try something with her when I took her to shower." His eyes narrowed as he considered the implications. "Imagine. All these years. With nobody at all to watch out for them or protect them."

"Sheep among wolves." the Doctor mumbled darkly, recalling a line from a bible he'd read once.

"So what are we going to do about it?" His companion's severe posture and intense stare were meant as a challenge.

The Doctor stuffed his hands into the pockets of his coat and sighed. " _We_ are going to watch out for those women and _we_ will protect them. Beyond that, there are still many unknowns. We must learn what this project is really all about. Who stands to benefit from it."

Turlough leaned forward in his seat, his hands clasped tightly, his blue eyes still locked on the Doctor expectantly. "And then?"

The Doctor's face was resolute. "And then we make sure that whoever is responsible is held accountable for their actions."

Turlough nodded in such a way that assured the Doctor he would be held to his word.

The Doctor made his way to the console and flipped a switch on the computer.

"What's bothering me at the moment is this mysterious woman who's placed herself in the center of things. This River Song." The Doctor shook his head, annoyed. "I'm curious to know what I might find on her in the data core." He typed his query on the keyboard and studied the screen.

Turlough stood and stretched, then wandered over to join the Doctor at the console. "Any luck?" he inquired.

The Doctor didn't answer for he was too busy peering at the computer monitor, flummoxed. When he'd attempted to pull up a search on River Song, the TARDIS computer had given him an error screen... an error screen he generally only saw when his search linked too closely into his own personal timeline.

"Well what's _that_ supposed to mean then?" he asked his ship, his voice a bit higher that normal. " _Do_ you or _don't_ you have any information on this person Old Girl? And what's it got to do with me?"

He noticed a new word appear on the error screen that he'd never seen there before. In all capital letters, near the bottom left hand corner.

SPOILERS.

The word meant nothing to him- had no connotation to him personally whatsoever. And yet.

He shivered noticeably.

"Are you _alright_?" Turlough asked, regarding him curiously.

The Doctor cleared his throat, trying to shake the feeling that someone had just walked over his grave. He felt disconcerted to say the least.

"Yes, just... must be a fault in the program... or something." He knew he sounded peculiar and unsure of himself.

He had to take a seat he felt so disorientated.

"Doctor." Turlough insisted. "You look unwell."

The Doctor _felt_ rather unwell. He closed his eyes and put his face into his hands for a moment. Something had come over him. Something eerie that skirted the edges of his telepathic senses.

Something like premonition.

* * *

 _Five Hours Later, the TARDIS_

The sisters had been awake for nearly an hour but they remained in the bedroom, arguing.

"Well what _if_ this is some sort of trick?" Haven insisted. "I just don't see how aligning ourselves with strange men is the rational way to go." She was sitting on the edge of the bed putting on a pair of pink athletic shoes that had mysteriously appeared. They fit her perfectly much to her surprise.

Cadence rolled her eyes and leaned against the wall. "So far, have they given us any reason at all _not_ to trust them?" she demanded.

Haven raised an eyebrow. "They _are_ male, aren't they?"

Cadence scoffed. "And in case you've failed to notice, they haven't exactly displayed any of the unpleasant behaviors males so often do. Perhaps in their culture, males are a bit more evolved."

"Or perhaps, they're simply gay as you suggested yesterday." Haven crossed her arms stubbornly. "Just because they aren't interested in using us for sex doesn't mean there's anything altruistic about their motives. They could be pirates or thieves. They could be using us to get more information about the ship."

Cadence gave her an incredulous look. "Your imagination is somethin else. These men have a bloody ship that travels in time and space that they can make invisible. What would they want with this big old piece of garbage? And if they were intent to steal something, couldn't they just materialize inside a bank vault?"

Haven chewed on her bottom lip knowing that her accusations were far fetched. But she was reluctant to stay in the company of the two men who had come to their rescue yesterday. Never before in her life had she been able to rely on anyone but herself and her sister. Cadence was the _only_ person who had ever given a shit about her.

Except perhaps the strange woman who had given them the gift and the curse of their mother's digital chronicle. River Song. Haven believed in her heart that _she_ could be trusted. She couldn't really explain it. She supposed it was a bit illogical of her. But that fact didn't make her any less certain.

When she didn't answer right away, Cadence continued, hammering home her point. "All they have done is help us. Sheltered us, shared food and drink with us. And perhaps most importantly, they've _listened_ to us."

Yes. It was true that Turlough and the Doctor had shown them kindness. Maybe they even saved their lives. They fed them, gave them a place to rest and clothes to wear. But no man would do so much without expecting _something_ in return. Of that, Haven was sure.

"I say we stick to the original plan." she told her older sister in a firm voice. "As soon as the spacecraft has landed, we find a place to lay low and we let that River person find us."

Cadence knelt on the floor in front of her sister and took her hands. "Haven. I know that we've yet to meet a single man who had our best intentions at heart." she sighed. "Christ, from mum's journal it sounds as though our own dad was a bit of a tosser."

Both sisters couldn't help but giggle at these words.

Cadence smoothed a lock of long brown hair back behind her sister's ear. "Please. I need you to trust my judgment. I know I'm only two years older than you and I know that half the time you are _way_ fucking smarter than me. But... that man. The Doctor. He is _good_. I know it down to my very being. I can't really explain it... it's just. I'm sure he can keep us safe. If you can't trust them Hotaru, trust _me_."

A smile appeared on Haven's face at the use of her childhood nickname. Cadence had called her Hotaru for as long as she could remember and often used it when she was being affectionate. And she could definitely understand what her sister meant about trusting the Doctor. It was the same sort of inexplicable certainty she had felt in the presence of River.

After a short pause, Haven nodded.

"You know I trust you." she assured Cadence. "And I suppose we can stay put for the time being. But I still fully intend to locate River Song on Giannes."

Cadence stood with a sigh of relief. "Good. Because I think we'd be foolish to write off the only person who seems to have some idea of what the hell is going on around here."

She grabbed Haven's hand and yanked her roughly to her feet. Haven very nearly smacked into the wall from the momentum. She laughed and aimed a half-hearted punch at her sister's shoulder.

"Evil asshole." Haven said, narrowing her eyes playfully.

Cadence just grinned. "It's not my fault you're so clumsy."


	5. Chapter 5

_Giannes, 3019 A.D._

Apart from the one side of the ship that was partially collapsed and practically fused to the mountainside, the ship was surprisingly mostly intact.

From what River could determine with such limited light, it didn't appear that _Aquarius Epta_ had crashed at all. It looked like it had been landed in this very spot and abandoned. Over time, it had simply become part of the landscape.

She found a breach in the hull due to corrosion and ducked inside, shining the torch all around. The rotted interior was barely recognizable as any type of ship. The polymers and fabrics hadn't held up as well as the metal of the exterior. It smelled damp and of vegetation like a cave.

She ran the light along the floor and saw that nature had taken over. Dirt and some type of robust plant life covered the ground. There was also some type of moss climbing the walls of the cavernous craft.

River's education and years of experience had kicked in and she began to study the ship as she would any other excavation.

She found herself wishing she had her digital chronicle device so she could record a running narrative of her findings. It was how she typically worked.

Of course _typically_ , she would have a team. _Typically_ she would also have her tools. And _typically_ , a dig wasn't a spontaneous stop while on the run from killer robots.

River smiled as she examined some type of panel with buttons on the moss covered wall. "Typical can be ever so boring." she smirked.

The panel appeared to be some sort of locking control. A person could stand in this spot and lock rooms and entire sections of the craft from here.

Her eyes narrowed. _Why the hell would they want to do that?_ She wondered.

She continued on her search, inspecting every surface and studying every feature with a laser focus, not even noticing the time that was passing. The decay was obviously extensive. But she still had the feeling that she should be finding a lot more.

She hadn't come across a single artifact, though she had most certainly encountered several sections of passenger quarters. The ship was enormous and she wasn't near done looking but, it still seemed highly unlikely that she wouldn't have found something by now. She'd dug up many ship wrecks in her career. Even among ships that were reduced to pieces from the impact, the surrounding terrain had been littered with the belongings of passengers and crew alike.

But so far, there was nothing.

Her mind drifted back to their search of _Lady September._ Lantieri's gruff voice echoed in her mind.

 _Well where the hell is their shit?_

Scavengers? Perhaps the androids seized all personal items after disposing of the humans? A disturbing thought occurred to her.

This meant that the very same fate may have befell everyone aboard _Aquarius Epta_ all those centuries ago. Every man, woman and child meant to come to this star system, to spread out and start a civilization very well could have been extinguished by those android things.

It would certainly explain a lot.

River entered a long corridor that for some reason was reminding her of the corridors in the TARDIS. Certainly didn't look the same. These corridors were dank and deteriorated. She turned left and found herself walking into what might have once been a large supply room.

A cold chill danced down her spine as she walked through, shining the torch around at what appeared to be collapsed shelving units. She blinked, surprised by the inexplicable feeling.

Something about this room.

River Song had excavated many crypts in her day. Ancient, mysterious and often shrouded in legend, those digs had been, on occasion a little creepy.

But nothing like the eerie feeling she got being in _this_ room. Never had River been somewhere that felt so haunted.

She felt a strange tingle along her skin as goosebumps erupted all over.

And for some reason she would never be able to explain, she swore she felt the Doctor's presence right there in that very room.

After an abbreviated search, she left quickly, heading back up the corridor in the direction she'd yet to explore. Wishful thinking she supposed, sensing the Doctor's presence here.

River's hearts literally ached at the thought of the TARDIS materializing suddenly and whisking her away. She realized as she reached a bulkhead toward the rear of the craft that this was just the sort of thing that the Doctor loved meddling in. Perhaps if she ever made it out of here, she'd do her best to get a hold of him so he might help her solve the mystery.

Beyond the bulkhead was an odd little enclosure with some sort of vent in the wall, perhaps leading to a maintenance shaft.

The vent fell away from the wall easily and she shined her light up. It was nearly filled with dirt.

"This must be the ship's access cubicle." She'd seen them on several ships of this size.

"Which means... there _should_ be an access panel somewhere in this floor." she murmured. Her eyes narrowed as she thought of the black box and flight recorder. She wondered if either of them would be of any use all these years later.

She reached in her coat pocket and came out with a trowel. At least she was a bit prepared for a dig. She began to hack at the dirt on the floor, scraping through the gritty soil, attempting to unearth the panel.

 _There._

She used the trowel as a lever to loosen the panel and after a bit of grunting and cursing, it finally popped off.

She blinked in disbelief. The space was surprisingly pristine, preserved by the fire proof and waterproof insulation and the nickel plated lining. Not a speck of the corrosion or sediment that had overtaken the rest of the ship was here. But there _was_ no flight data recorder, no black box. Where they were once installed, there was only an empty cavity with frayed wires... and some sort of small mobile device just sitting there.

"What the _hell_?" River murmured, leaning down to retrieve the device.

She was shocked to find that, protected within the panel, the device was in excellent condition. It appeared to be a digital chronicle, not unlike her own.

River pressed a button, not actually expecting anything to happen.

A woman's voice startled her. " _Digital Chronicle of Leola Jae Barber. Fourteen May of two thousand and thirty nine. It's the first day of our journey. We are officially on our way to a whole other star system."_ There was a sigh. _"Things are going... a bit differently than we expected._ " She sounded a bit angry and very confused. " _For starters, they don't want husband and wife to sleep together. They say it's because they have a very specific plan for when Gen 1 is meant to procreate. Until then, no funny business."_ The woman scoffed. " _Can you imagine_? _Five years, they expect us to sleep apart from our spouses!"_

River made a clucking sound with her tongue. "Ohh Sweetie. I'd have abandoned ship before it could even leave Baldrine." she told the recorded voice dryly.

* * *

 _TARDIS, Aquarius Epta Storage Hold, 2080 A.D._

They had gathered in the TARDIS library, as the Doctor thought it was as good a place as any to discuss their strategy.

Turlough leaned against the arm of a fine Victorian chair, inlaid with shiny wood and covered in an elegant silk fabric.

Cadence and Haven sat side by side on a forest green velvet sofa.

The women had been quiet this morning, particularly Haven. The Doctor got the distinct impression that she wasn't keen on working with them. That she didn't trust Turlough or himself.

 _Who could possibly blame her_? He thought grimly.

"The number one item on our agenda today is information gathering." the Doctor began, pacing in front of the others. "Now, I spent the majority of last night researching all I could on the Aquarius Epta Project. Oddly enough, there is very little out there. Much of the information I could find seemed to be a lot of public relations propaganda. Reaching new frontiers. Diversity in space and all that."

"Fat lot of good _that_ does us." Turlough muttered.

The Doctor paused in his pacing and chewed his lip thoughtfully. "It's almost as though all files and data pertaining to this project have been erased. Somehow." He shook his head. "The TARDIS databanks draw from some of the most classified resources in the galaxy. The fact that I can't find so much as a passenger manifest makes absolutely no sense."

"Why am I so _not_ surprised to hear this." Cadence murmured. Haven sat quietly beside her, studying her fingernails, looking like she'd checked out of the conversation.

"A project of this caliber, seems likely that anything useful would be kept safe on one highly secure server designed especially for The Project." Turlough suggested, his brow furrowed thoughtfully. "And given the duration of the journey, it stands to reason that the server would have come _with_ the ship."

The Doctor nodded, putting his hands into his pockets. "Just what I was thinking." he sighed. "We must find that server in order to find what we're looking for."

"Which is...?" Cadence prompted.

He gave her a small smile. "The truth."

She nodded, her return smile appreciative.

"So what then? We go take a look at the ship?" Turlough asked.

The Doctor nodded. "But before we go blundering in-"

"Like we usually do..." Turlough muttered sotto voce.

The Doctor cleared his throat, pretending not to have heard. "Before we go blundering in, we'll need to really know this ship." He pointed toward the sisters. "I must know _all_ that you know. You don't even realize how useful the information you have tucked away in your minds can be to us. You've grown up on this ship, know all the ins and outs. The Coordinators. The Guardians. Their schedules."

The sisters were nodding their agreement, Haven's head now clearly back in the game. They both looked eager to be useful.

The Doctor continued. "Now, I must know what you know. And the quickest way for me to do that is to gather the information telepathically."

Cadence gasped. Haven piped up incredulously "You mean, read our bloody minds?" She gestured in disbelief and asked Turlough. "Is he bein serious?"

Turlough sighed. "Really, it's quite safe. And he'll only be looking at information pertaining to the ship."

The Doctor threw Turlough a grateful look for speaking up on his behalf, then addressed the sisters.

"Honestly, it will save us precious time so that we can get to the bottom of all this. According to the TARDIS, we have at best a day and a half before this ship sets down on planet. Since we have no idea what they have planned at journey's end, we need to do this before that happens." He watched as Haven shot Cadence a look, her jaw clenched. Cadence reached over and patted her sister on the knee reassuringly before tilting her head and challenging the Doctor.

"Can you even _do_ that?" she sounded highly skeptical. "I've not heard of a human that could read another person's mind."

The Doctor gave her a congenial half smile. "Nor have I. So I suppose it's a good thing that I'm not human." He folded his hands in front of him and patiently waited for the inevitable response.

Haven did not disappoint. She shot out of her seat. "You mean you're a fuckin _alien_? Nuh uh. No flippin way" She looked at Cadence who had also stood, albeit much more calmly, and shook her head. "You expect me to trust them _now?_ "

Cadence crossed her arms and peered at the Doctor curiously.

"If you're an alien, how come you look so human?"

The Doctor chuckled. "Since my kind came long before humans, I maintain that it is humans that look like Time Lords."

"Time Lord? That's what your kind is called?" Cadence wondered, looking interested more than upset. Though her sister still looked like she might bolt from the room at any moment.

"That's right." The Doctor explained. "And to answer your first question Cadence, yes I can read another person's mind. Time Lords have a natural, if somewhat limited, sort of telepathy."

"But... you're not even human." Haven pointed out coldly. "Why should we believe anything you say?"

Despite all attempts at being patient, Haven's words raised the Doctor's ire. His tone was harsh but matter-of-fact. "From what I can tell, to date, every single human you've encountered have done nothing but lie and take advantage of you. So, please, do explain how my _not_ being a human automatically makes me untrustworthy."

He crossed his arms and returned her stare.

Turlough raised his eyebrows and cleared his throat.

Cadence slowly took a seat and said softly, "Right."

Haven looked at a loss for what to do. It was clear that she knew he had a point but her pride wouldn't allow her to concede the point.

Eventually she too returned to her seat and remained silent.

The Doctor gestured questioningly. "Do I have your permission?" he asked the women before even taking a single step in their direction.

Haven's expression changed when she realized the Doctor had no intention of forcing the issue. She blinked, confused. They were being given a choice. Nobody would force them to do anything.

Cadence smiled, her eyes studying him in wonderment. "What do you say Hokaru?" she bumped her sister's side. "Wanna let an alien go wanderin around inside your head?"

A smile twitched at the corners of Haven's mouth but she refused to give in to good humor. "Do what you're gonna do." she mumbled indifferently.

* * *

 _An Hour Later, the TARDIS_

Haven was alone in the control room, sitting tensely in a jumpseat, her eyes fixed on the screen of the scanner. Four Guardians were thoroughly searching the entire supply room. It was a surreal vantage point; watching the search unfold on screen from the safety of the invisible blue box.

The Guardians had brought large floodlights to check each and every corner of the dark storage area. The fact that a whole day later, they hadn't abandoned their search of a single room for two women spoke to the severity of the Barber's crimes.

The fact that they'd _dared_ to question the reality they'd always known. That they'd stirred things up among fellow passengers, possibly causing some of _them_ to question that reality.

Haven shook her head. It was madness how her whole world had changed in the space of a few weeks. Obviously, she felt it was ultimately a good thing that she'd learned the truth. It didn't make it any easier to accept.

And now, circumstances had placed them under the protection of two strange individuals who might be every bit as devious and detrimental as the people they were currently hiding from.

The fact that one of them was a mind reading alien did not ease her anxieties. True, the telepathic transfer had been quick and painless and it really was amazing that suddenly, the Doctor was an expert on the Aquarius Epta shuttle. He was in his study, formulating a plan now. Cadence had opted to join him. Haven scoffed. If her sister wasn't into girls, and the Doctor likely into guys, she'd be wondering about those two.

Suddenly, Haven noticed what was happening on the screen and she gasped. Her heart lurched and she sat forward, adrenaline coursing through her. One of the Guardians was standing directly in front of the TARDIS. Mere Inches away, his face an extreme close up on the scanner screen.

"You don't have to worry. The outer shield is set to invisible." Turlough's voice nearly made her jump out of her skin.

"Oh holy shit! Give a girl a heart attack." Haven placed her hand over her heart and rolled her eyes.

He approached where she was sitting near the controls and leaned against the console, studying her.

"I didn't mean to frighten you." His blue eyes were troubled, like it really bothered him that he'd caused her any distress. "But you really needn't worry about those fellows outside."

Haven felt an unfamiliar warmth spread through her chest at his casual kindness. She fidgeted with a lock of hair and tried to look casual. "But what if he reached out and touched it? Wouldn't he _feel_ the TARDIS there?"

Turlough shrugged. "It is possible, but the Doctor has also activated a low level perception filter. It's quite subtle, but anyone in the vicinity won't be able to focus on this area of the room for long. And they won't even notice." He smiled and gestured to the screen. "See there. He's moving on."

Haven breathed a sigh of relief. An awkward silence followed.

After a time, Haven just came right out with it. "Tell me why you're helping us. What's in it for the Doctor?" She crossed her arms over her chest and regarded him solemnly.

Turlough raised his eyebrows and ran a hand across his face. "Haven. This might be hard for you to believe, but there _are_ good people in the universe. People who do things simply because it's the right thing to do." He put his hands up in a gesture of surrender. "I truly can't imagine how all this must be for you. But I do hope that you come to trust us. To trust me."

Haven swallowed and looked away. The truth was, there was something about this guy. She really wanted to believe him.

He changed the subject. "So... Hotaru? Did I hear Cadence call you that back in the library."

Haven grinned for the first time. "Yes. It's my nickname. Cadence has called me that since I was 4 or 5."

"It's Japanese for firefly." Turlough offered.

She nodded, slightly impressed that he should know that. "We had a Japanese nursemaid called Mihoko who pretty much raised us. She wasn't a Coordinator but she also wasn't the warm and cuddly type. And she wasn't around for long. She was quite old even then." Haven shrugged. "Anyway, my favorite story she would read was about hotaru. It was completely in Japanese and I didn't understand a word but I would beg her to read it night after night. She would read from the book and show us the pictures. Tiny, glowing little creatures lighting up the darkness like stars." She was smiling softly now and she leaned forward, curious. "I've never seen real hotaru. Have you?"

A smile tugged at the corners of Turlough's mouth. "I have."

His answer did something to her heart. Caused a longing, perhaps a jealousy for the life he'd led. She fiddled with the lock of hair once more. "Do they bite or sting, the fireflies?" she asked, fully aware she sounded a bit like a small child learning something for the first time.

He looked slightly amused. "They're harmless." he assured her.

Haven's brow furrowed. "Well why do they glow like that?"

Turlough cleared his throat and looked a little uncomfortable. "It's...erm... how they attract...mates."

Haven giggled at his obvious discomfort with the subject matter. He seemed strangely innocent to her. She found it quite endearing. "Well that seems a lot of trouble to go to." She teased. "There's gotta be an easier way than making your whole ass end light up like that."

Turlough cracked up laughing at that. "You'd be surprised the lengths that blokes will go to just to impress a girl."

His words left her stymied. Was this true in his world? Did men actually work to impress women.

Before she could ask, the Doctor and Cadence entered the control room from the corridor.

"Looks like we have a plan." Cadence announced, giving her sister a significant look.

"Right." the Doctor exclaimed, clapping his hands together. "So here's where we start..."


	6. Chapter 6

_Giannes, 3019 A.D._

" _Digital Chronicle of Leola Jae Barber, twenty August two thousand and forty one."_ Leola cleared her throat. _"Been thinkin a lot about home today. About normal life... and our flat. Just walkin down the bloody street."_ Her voice broke. _"I miss my friends. I miss Chinese takeaway and pub quiz night and seein the ocean. I miss workin...even for that handsy bastard Charlie Brooks."_

She chuckled sadly and then there was a long pause. When she spoke again, her voice was barely above a whisper. _"None of this is like they said it was going to be. It seems each day things get worse."_ She sniffled. _"Rhett seems to have infinite patience for their bullshit. As if the ends somehow justify the means, no matter how ridiculous the rules are getting. No matter how much like a prison this ships seems to be becoming."_ Leola sighed. _"We only see each other for a few hours a day now. They let us write letters but they read everything we write. None of this makes any sense. Is this really our life now?"_

River clicked off the device and wiped at her eyes. Leola's story was really getting to her. She had just made it back to the Rover after completing her search of _Aquarius Epta_. She hadn't been able to stop listening to the recording as she made her way through the rest of the ship's remains.

She expelled a breath and started the rover back up. It had begun to snow outside but River was so caught up in the story of a woman from nearly a thousand years ago, she barely noticed. So far, she'd learned that shortly after leaving Earth, the Coordinators had segregated the men from the women, regulated any time they spent together and if anyone got out of line, they were locked in their rooms for extended periods of time.

River raised her eyebrows as she checked to make sure she was still on the right track toward _Penumbra._ The snow was coming faster now to where she had to use the rover's wiper blades to keep the windscreen clear.

Leola had hit the nail on the head. It certainly sounded like some type of prison. But what for? What the hell did the Coordinators intend to _do_ with those people once they'd reached this star system?

Beyond the digital chronicle, the ship had offered up very little in the way of clues. She hadn't found any artifacts. On the bridge, the computer and controls were corroded and useless. It very much seemed that, like the _Lady September_ , _Aquarius Epta_ had been thoroughly plundered.

The silence was making her crazy. She started the device back up.

" _Digital Chronicle of Leola Jae Barber, first of September, two thousand forty one. They made me see the Project's shrink. Because clearly, I'm the one who's crazy here."_ She gave a disbelieving laugh. _"A passably kind woman called Janet with awful glasses."_ Another small chuckle. _"Janet is convinced that I'm depressed because I've been celibate for two years and she spent the session assuring me it was perfectly normal to miss my husband's attention."_ Her voice grew annoyed. _"The truth of the matter is, I haven't thought of sex for over a year. Rhett acts so strange now, so unlike himself. There's no gentleness or chivalry there. I don't want that man. I want my Rhett back."_

The entry ended just as the beeping on the locator device had gotten louder and more frequent. River realized that she was nearly right on top of the second exploration team's ship. She slowed her speed and squinted into the darkness and heavy snow, trying to get a visual. _There._ Just up ahead.

She felt adrenaline surge through her system as a mixture of hope and dread warred within her. Those _things_ had left her alone since she'd left _Aphelion Silver_ behind. But she was doubtful that her lucky streak would last forever.

She pulled up alongside the lost ship and thought of the crew that had arrived here in it a little more than a week before. She set her jaw angrily. They'd undoubtedly been accosted in the same fashion that her own crew had by those vile androids. All of their belongings taken as well no doubt.

"Hmm." River's eyes narrowed as she pictured in her mind's eye, her crew loading up the Rover. They'd all had their sidepacks on them. But had they had them on them when they'd returned to rescue Mackey?

River unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to check out the back floor board. She was excited to find the side packs that belonged to Lantieri and Mercer.

She snatched up Lantieri's bag and begin to dig through it. She immediately located a small energy weapon (much like the one she'd dropped when the androids had shot her) three small explosive devices and a large folding knife.

A small smile appeared on her face as she shouldered the bag. "Oh Frank." she murmured softly. "How you loved your toys."

She also rummaged through Mercer's bag and was glad to find some more rations and another torch. There was also a small tool kit which could prove useful. She threw all those items into Lantieri's bag, along with the vortex manipulator and Leola's recording device.

Cold wind assaulted her when she exited the rover and snow covered her curly mane of hair. The temperature was really dropping. She shivered and pulled her coat closed in an attempt to keep warm as she made her way to the entrance of the ship. The snow made it difficult to see very far in front of her and as she walked, abstract shapes became recognizable objects in the torchlight.

What she saw in the light of the torch there in front of her nearly made her drop all her belongings.

The ship had landed right beside the remains of an abandoned structure. A building. An actual building. To the left of what appeared to be the entrance to some sort of mine...

* * *

 _TARDIS, Aquarius Epta Storage Hold, 2080 A.D._

The Doctor had sketched a crude diagram of the ship's layout for Turlough's sake since he was the only one now unfamiliar with _Aquarius Epta._

Turlough leaned back against the console and looked the diagram over, squinting at it thoughtfully. "So, the data centre is here?" he inquired, pointing at a roughly square room in the bowels of the ship.

The Doctor nodded. "Precisely."

The plan was fairly simple. They needed to get into that data centre so they could hack the mainframe in order to gather as much information on the project as possible.

The Doctor had intended to materialize the TARDIS right inside the locked server room. Trouble was, as Cadence pointed out, there was _always_ tech maintenance personnel in that room, 24 hours a day. (Of course, the Doctor knew this to be true considering he now had all of Cadence's knowledge of the ship.) Obviously they didn't wish to cause a stir by appearing out of nowhere in a blue police box.

So the idea was to create some sort of diversion in order to clear the personnel from the data centre. This would give them enough time to get the information they needed and dematerialize safely.

The Doctor tapped a few keys on the spatial location input. He was programming the TARDIS to lock on to the mainframe's data signature so this would be a simple quick hop with no coordinates to worry about. He felt only the slightest hint of hesitation as he set the directional unit. Turlough would be piloting the TARDIS without the Doctor present and while he certainly trusted his red headed companion, he didn't exactly trust that his temperamental ship held Turlough in the same esteem.

They'd all agreed it should be Turlough and Haven to enter the data centre. Turlough's technological prowess had proven invaluable in the past and apparently Haven was quite the computer genius herself. Between the two of them, they should be able to gather the data they needed.

The Doctor finished with the directional unit and glanced over at Turlough and Haven. They were studying the diagram and talking to each other in low voices. Whatever she was saying must have been humorous because Turlough started to laugh. There was an evident bond between them. Interesting how Haven seemed much more trusting of Turlough now. And she brought out a protective side in the young man the Doctor hadn't seen before.

Just then Cadence entered the control room from the corridor looking nervous.

"Are you feeling alright?" The Doctor inquired when she reached him.

She chewed at her lip and wouldn't meet his eyes. "I'm not exactly thrilled at the thought of my sister being at the center of this plot." she admitted.

The Doctor regarded her gently. "We agreed that this plan makes the most sense." he reminded her. "You yourself said Haven is brilliant with a computer."

Cadence nodded and finally met his eyes, her expression bold. "You just promise me. You promise me that you're only doin this to help. That you haven't got some ulterior motive to hack that computer."

The Doctor smiled sincerely and reached to take Cadence by the hand. The gesture was meant to be reassuring in a strictly platonic way but she gasped and pulled away as if burned. His smile disappeared. Her reaction made him angry, though not at her. It made him angry that she couldn't trust affection from a friend. That these monsters she'd been around all her life had done this to her.

He put his hands into his coat pockets and sighed. "Cadence, I promise you. The _only_ reason I'm interested in that data is to help discover what has happened here." His tone became even more determined. " And I assure you that we will get to the bottom of all this and that none of the horrible people on this ship will be able to hurt you or Haven _ever_ again."

Cadence blinked, surprised by the intensity of his response. Tears pooled in her blue eyes and she looked away, trying to hide the fact that his words had touched her. "I suppose that's all a person could ask." she muttered, wiping at her eyes surreptitiously as she headed over to her sister.

The Doctor watched her as she instructed her sister on being cautious.

"I won't let anything happen to her." Turlough assured Cadence. By the look Cadence was giving Turlough, the Doctor hoped for Turlough's sake, that was true.

"Okay. You two know what to do then?" The Doctor interrupted the trio loudly.

"We can do this." Haven replied confidently.

Turlough nodded. "Not a problem."

"Right. Well, the storage room is clear so it's time we set off." the Doctor nodded his head toward the door and Cadence joined him.

The TARDIS doors opened to an eerily silent, and still dark storage hold. The Guardians had finished up their search a few hours earlier and called it a night. The Doctor and the others had planned to make their move at night when there were less Guardians wandering the ship and most of the Coordinators were in bed.

"So..." Cadence whispered as they made their way toward the center of the room by torchlight. "What if they still have someone standing guard outside the storage hold doors?"

"I'd considered that." the Doctor whispered back. "That's why we aren't using the doors."

He ignored her glare of annoyance and confusion and beckoned for her to follow. When they reached the wall, he pulled a flathead screwdriver from his pocket and used it to remove the duct cover.

Understanding dawned on Cadence's face. "Takin a shortcut, are we?" Her tone suggested she approved of the alternate route.

Their current location was on the very same deck as the data centre. And by a happy coincidence, the storage hold happened to be right next to the ship's laundry area.

The ventilation duct was large enough for them to crawl through quite easily and they reached the laundry space with no problems.

The Doctor helped Cadence out of the duct. "Right." he whispered, turning to check out the darkened room.

The large area was dimly lit by a small LED over the industrial size washers and dryers. To the right of that were dozens of canvas hampers. Over to the left were rows of clothes racks holding uniforms and dresses and trousers and tops on hangers. When he turned back, Cadence had disappeared.

He turned in a circle, shining the torch all around. "Cadence." he whispered fiercely, his hearts hammering against his ribcage. Where had she gone to?

She popped up from behind a long clothing rack, smiling. She was wearing a housekeeper's uniform.

"Alright then. Will this do?" she gestured to the outfit she'd changed into and turned in a circle.

The Doctor grinned. "Perfect."

* * *

 _Back in the TARDIS_

"Do you _actually_ know how to fly this thing?" Haven asked him doubtfully, watching him as he checked over some gauges and consulted the computer.

Turlough looked up at her, offended. "I'll have you know I've flown the TARDIS many times before on my own." He straightened out the sleeves on his jacket and looked down at her somewhat imperiously. "On occasion, I find I have to help the Doctor out of scrapes. He does get himself into the most terrible trouble."

Haven giggled at his pompous tone. "Alright then. Take it easy. I believe you." His defensiveness at her skepticism had revealed yet another vulnerability of the red headed stranger- a stranger who seemed to be becoming a friend. It was fascinating to Haven who wasn't used to being around men that were anything other than cruel, overbearing assholes.

She walked around the console to where he was fiddling at the controls. "So what exactly do you need to do to fly this thing?" Haven studied the array of switches and dials on the control panel curiously. She reached out to touch one of the blinking lights and Turlough grabbed her hand to stop her.

"Careful there." he warned fondly.

His touch sent a shock through her. A shock that was not entirely unpleasant. He seemed not to notice. "You press the wrong thing here, you might just punch a hole in the fabric of spacetime." he explained in a joking tone. He didn't release her hand right away either. He gave it a little friendly squeeze before letting go, then set about answering her question.

Turlough explained about the directional unit being preset by the Doctor and the controls he would use to get them where they needed to go. Haven supposed he was being specific about the levers and switches and buttons but she barely noticed. All the while he was explaining, she stood staring down at her hand, her heart racing, confused by her body's reaction to his touch.

She cleared her throat, willing her voice to sound normal. "So how do we know when the coast is clear?"

"Ah, simple." Turlough exclaimed. He pulled a square device from his pocket. "He'll send a signal to this and it will alert us." He pressed a button and the small box emitted a loud chirping sound. "It will sound like this."

Haven nodded. The plan seemed simple enough. Cadence and the Doctor aimed to distract the tech fellows in the data centre. They'd then alert Turlough and Haven with the signal device who would then spring into action and take the TARDIS directly to the locked server room. Then they'd have to use their combined computer expertise to attempt to crack the mainframe.

Haven made a face, realizing all that could go wrong. Perhaps _simple_ wasn't the right word.

"You're frightened, aren't you?" Turlough asked, studying her. It wasn't an accusation. He was showing concern.

Haven sighed and said quiet honestly, "A lot can go wrong here. What if Cadence and the Doctor are found by the Guardians of Protection?"

Turlough moved to sit in one of the jumpseats and gestured for Haven to sit across from him. "You tell me." he said seriously. "Any idea what might happen to them?"

She shrugged. "Me and Cadence suspect they have some type of holding cell area. There have been several times when passengers have acted up, they're taken away to 'cool down'."

"What do you mean, you _suspect_?" Turlough questioned, his eyes narrowed. "Don't these troublemakers come back and tell everyone else what they've experienced?"

Haven blinked. "Come to think of it... I-I-I don't believe I've _ever_ seen someone come back from a cool down." She shook her head, troubled that she only just now realized this. Even more frightening, when she closed her eyes and tried to summon up the name or even a face of one of the so-called 'troublemakers', there was nothing.

This wasn't the first time she'd noticed fuzziness or blank spaces in her memory. She and her sister had discussed it before, surmising they were being drugged. She swallowed and looked up into Turlough's eyes, trying to suppress the panic rising within her. When she spoke again, her voice was a haunted whisper. "Perhaps they've... they've _killed_ them. Like they did all of Gen 1..."

Turlough didn't tell her she was being ridiculous. He didn't tell her to calm down or not to worry. He reached across and took one of her hands between the both of his. "We will learn the truth about _all_ of this. We will find out exactly what these people are up to and we will put a stop to it." he assured her. "Until we do, until all this is over, I need you to do just one thing for me, if you would be so kind."

Haven's lips were pressed together and her heart was beating double time in her chest. This young man's hands touching her somehow made everything feel a bit better, though admittedly, it was difficult to focus. She did still manage to hear his words through the ringing in her ears, see the intense look in his blue eyes. There was something he wanted from her.

She leaned forward, her large brown eyes rapt. "What do you need me to do?" she whispered, thinking, with how he made her feel, she might do just about anything for him.

Turlough grinned and replied softly. "Stay alive, please."


	7. Chapter 7

_Giannes, 3019 A.D._

River shone her light first around the exterior of the building, then into the entrance of the tunnel. It definitely appeared to be a deliberately blasted out rock formation. Someone mining for something.

She stood in the rapidly accumulating snow, debating whether to explore the building adjacent to the apparent mine. Hell, whether to investigate the mine itself.

It was the first sign of intelligent life on this planet aside from the androids. _Did the building and the mine belong to the androids_? She wondered.

The thought had her backing away, making her way backwards toward the entrance of _Penumbra._ The first thing she needed to do was find a way to get that vortex manipulator charged and ready to go. She knew she was pushing her luck doing all this investigating in the dark with no backup. She turned and ran up the entrance ramp.

She immediately headed to the flight deck and plugged her key into the ignition.

"Here's hoping." she whispered and turned the key.

She let out a whoop of sheer joy when all the power came up. Not surprisingly, as with _Lady September,_ the drive system was shot. There was no way to get this thing off the ground.

She made sure the doors were secured and then made her way through the rest of the ship. Once again, there was no sign of the human occupants.

No matter. She knew what she needed to do.

It didn't take her long to get the vortex manipulator wired up to one of the power cells located beneath the control panel in the cockpit.

After a bit of tinkering, the device finally flashed blue, showing that it was getting juice to it. She nodded, pleased with her handiwork. She gently set the vortex manipulator in the copilot seat to charge. She had no idea how long it might take.

River yawned and wondered how many hours had passed while she'd explored _Aquarius Epta._ She pulled out her useless mobile phone. Certainly couldn't get a signal here, but it could at least tell her the time.

She was surprised to realize it had been nearly fifteen hours since her crew had landed on Giannes. She didn't feel the least bit hungry but decided she needed to keep her strength up. She pulled out some of the food ration packets and water and sat in the captain's seat eating quietly. She checked on the vortex manipulator from time to time, her mouth a grim line. It was taking far longer than she'd hoped.

It occurred to her that she might pop back into the sleeping quarters and get a bit of sleep in an actual bed. Exhaustion was catching up with her and she felt her lids growing heavy. But River felt safer right where she was, her seat turned to face the door so nobody could sneak up on her, her vortex manipulator charging on the seat next to her and Lantieri's gun tucked securely into her coat.

She settled back into the captain's seat, reclining it as far as it would go and pressed play on Leola's device. She closed her eyes.

" _Digital Chronicle of Leola Jae Barber, tenth of January two thousand and forty two. It's been a while since I've chronicled. I know."_ Her voice sounded raspy. _"Those bastards... they've had me locked up. Apparently it's a crime to be unhappy here. They said they didn't want me influencing other passengers with my negative attitude. So they took me to a secluded section of the ship and locked me up by myself."_ She drew in a shaky breath. _"They kept me there, all alone for three bloody months."_

River's eyes flew open and she felt her stomach flip. What sort of monsters had been involved in this project?

" _They just let me see Rhett. My loving, protective husband._ " She gave a hard, bitter laugh. _"He told me 'Lee Lee, everything will be much easier for you if you just accept how things are.'"_ Leola's voice became cold and sharp as an icicle. _"I told him I'd sooner fucking die. I can't believe I let him talk me into this bullshit. I can't believe I've traded my life and everything I've ever known to get stuck in some mad space prison."_

River's eyes were narrowed and she could feel her blood begin to boil. She checked on the vortex manipulator once more. She guessed it was maybe fifty percent charged. She turned the digital recording device around and around in her hands, almost dreading to hear what happened next. To listen to Leola suffer and not be able to do anything about it. To be unable to help.

River's eyes drifted back to the vortex manipulator. Well, perhaps _unable_ was the wrong word.

Suddenly she was wide awake, bolt upright in the seat. The thought that she might be able to help the smart and funny young woman whose story she'd been experiencing was a tempting one. But River also knew there were rules when it came to time travel, that consequences arose from meddling in the past. Not to mention those pesky paradoxes.

But she also happened to know an individual who practically made it his life's work to flaunt those rules. To make exceptions in the name of making people's lives better. In fact, she'd married that individual. (After, of course, trying to kill him once or twice.)

River begin to consider the possibilities. Of course, she knew she couldn't change something on a large scale _directly_. The destiny of the _Aquarius Epta_ shuttle was a fixed point. She couldn't help everyone. Large scale changes in time made waves that had the potential to harm the fabric of time itself. Small ripples however...

"I'm going to need to know more." she said out loud in a decisive tone.

She stood, buttoning up her coat. She checked her weapon to make sure it was ready, grabbed a torch and, almost as an afterthought, tucked one of Lantieri's explosives into a pocket of her coat.

She strode purposefully back out into the snowstorm and headed toward the dilapidated building. She was going to have to find out more before she went blundering into the past. She had to know what this whole project was about because it was becoming abundantly clear it wasn't about colonizing Giannes. The planet had been completely absent of infrastructure... until she'd reached _this_ location.

The stairs leading up to the building were made from solid stone. Damaged, chipped and worn away but stone nonetheless. She decided to forego the rust eaten hand rail which looked ready to crumble to dust at the lightest touch.

If this building did belong to the androids, they needed to have a word with their maintenance staff.

She stepped inside, keeping an eye on her surroundings. It was dark and dank and had the same empty, ancient feeling that _Aquarius Epta_ had.

She worked her way through the immense building that was partially underground, clearly attached to the mine itself. What was left of the building and its contents were not easily recognizable but River made a living reading timeworn locations such as this.

There were countless sleeping quarters and two mess halls. There were showers and restrooms and even a laundry facility. This building was meant to house hundreds of people. River was beginning to get the picture and it wasn't pretty.

She reached a large room that appeared to be an administrative section. After all, every enterprise needed an office.

On the floor of the office, beneath the rubble of the partially caved in ceiling, she saw a nearly disintegrated metal sign bearing the faded insignia of the Aquarius Epta Project. Her eyes narrowed as she knelt down for a closer look.

"No infrastructure at all... apart from a compound attached to a mine. A compound that _apparently_ belonged to an organization shuttling in a large group of guests." She stood and looked around, anger growing in her. She made a sound of disgust, a cynical smirk on her beautiful face. "Always comes down to money, doesn't it?"

This building was indeed meant to house hundreds of people. Hundreds of people meant to work in the mine.

Unless River was very much mistaken, _Aquarius Epta_ was a slave ship.

* * *

 _Operations Deck, Aquarius Epta 2080 A.D._

"Are you quite sure I am convincing in this disguise?" The Doctor asked Cadence self consciously for the third time, studying the material of the navy blue shirt critically.

Cadence was clearly trying not to laugh. "You make quite an impressive Laundry Attendant there Doctor."

The Doctor smoothed his shirt down and consulted the name tag he wore. "The name's Bernard. And I'll have you know I'm the Laundry _Master_ , not just some ordinary Attendant." He pointed to the title printed on the name tag in case she doubted his word.

Cadence couldn't keep herself from laughing this time. She had to cover her face with both hands to muffle the sound. "Alright there Bernard. According to this schedule, the night shift doesn't get started until midnight and that's forty minutes away. I say we head out like it's any normal shift and hope nobody notices we're a little early." She had found a pair of spectacles with gaudy red frames in a locker and they did a lot to change her appearance.

The Doctor nodded in response though it was apparent his thoughts were elsewhere. "I think that's a perfectly reasonable plan." He was squinting down at the name tag once again. "Laundry Master? Hmm. I had a friend a long time ago called the Master. Though... _not_ the Laundry Master. That'd be a rubbish Time Lord name, wouldn't it? The Laundry Master..."

When he finally looked up, he saw Cadence was leaning on a housekeeping cart, looking at him with equal parts disbelief and amusement. He cleared his throat. "Right. Do you need some help with your cart Cadence?"

She shook her head and smirked. "I got this. And the name's Abigail." She pointed to her own nametag.

The Doctor grinned and gestured to the door. "Shall we then Abigail?"

She pushed the cart out into the corridor and he followed close behind, wheeling a linen cart. They were taking a calculated risk that nobody would notice that they were early for their shift and also, that they were unfamiliar faces to this deck. They were counting on the ugly reality that most people pay very little attention to the housekeeping staff.

They both stared at the floor as they made their way down the hall. The Doctor felt his hearts nearly stop when they encountered a pair of swaggering Guardians at a coffee machine near the elevator.

He hoped they could get past the Guardians without any interaction. It wouldn't do to be noticed. He silently willed Cadence to keep her head down and her mouth closed.

"I'm tellin you... this little bitch couldn't get enough of me." The big, ugly caucasian guy with a buzzcut was brimming with pride, crudely discussing his sexual escapades for all to hear. "You shoulda seen her face when I-" The Doctor was sure it was only an accident when Cadence ran over his foot with her heavy cart.

" _YOWCH!"_ the guy shouted, hopping up and down on his uninjured foot. " _Sonofabitch!_ Ya dumb cow. Watch where you're goin with that rig!" All the while his partner was doubled over laughing hysterically.

Cadence, for her part, instead of beating a hasty retreat was fawning all over him, screeching " _Atsiprasau! Atsiprasau!"_ in an impressively convincing Lithuanian accent.

The Doctor could only stand there with a hand to his forehead, shaking his head. So much for flying under the radar. He hoped the red glasses would be enough to keep her from being recognized.

Cadence continued babbling to the security fellows in apologetic toned Lithuanian but it was clear they didn't understand a word of it. Which was a blessing since now she was saying some rather inappropriate things about the man's mother as well as about certain parts of his anatomy.

The injured Guardian had stopped jumping around and now appeared to be pretending it hadn't hurt that much. The Guardian who wasn't hurt had finally stopped his laughing and was reassuring Cadence in that loud, slow, over-articulate way reserved for people who speak a different language. "It's fine lady. Just get back to work."

The situation had surpassed awkward. The injured Guardian appealed to the Doctor in a desperate tone. "Hey mate. Do _you_ understand English? Tell your little friend here to get movin."

The Doctor cleared his throat and said firmly in a voice much gruffer than his own with a faint German accent, "Abigail! We must go!"

Cadence finished her performance and began to push her cart once more. The Doctor rolled his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief once they'd passed the two men and were down the hall a ways. "You couldn't have dealt with that in a more subtle fashion?" he hissed.

"I hope I broke his fucking foot." Cadence replied matter of factly.

At an intersecting corridor, Cadence hung a left. They passed the open door to a large conference room, and two closed doors before finally reaching the door to the data centre.

Here they stopped and shared a somber look. It was show time.

Cadence hesitated for only a moment before reaching out and rapping vigorously on the door. "Housekeeping!" she singsonged cheerfully.

The Doctor reached into the uniform jacket and palmed the device he'd brought just for this occasion. The door opened out into the corridor and he stood concealed behind it.

He heard an annoyed male voice say, "You're new... _and_ early. What happened to Delores? She usually comes by around 12:30 or so."

The Doctor sighed. So much for people not noticing housekeepers.

"I take your trash?" Cadence asked in feigned broken English, not once breaking character or losing confidence in their ruse.

"Sure, whatever." the guy answered disinterestedly. He allowed her to enter the room. She returned quickly with a full wastebasket. She pulled out the full bag, tied it up and tossed it into the large bag on her cart. When she replaced the liner, she casually held the container out within the Doctor's reach who placed the device inside.

Cadence went back in the room to replace the trash can and returned to the corridor.

"You have good night!" she called to the man, her Lithuanian accent still going strong.

"Yeah, sure." he replied indifferently.

The door closed and they both breathed a sigh of relief. They were headed in the opposite direction from which they came, intending to ditch the carts somewhere and go hide back in the supply room until the TARDIS came back to retrieve them.

"So remind me how that gadget works." Cadence encouraged in a low voice. "Will that gas stuff kill him?"

" _Of course not!_ " The Doctor sputtered, both offended and horrified that she should be so casual at the prospect. He modulated his tone when they walked past a mechanic toting a box of tools. "Vicellan gas is merely a tranquilizer. He'll sleep, then be good as new in about an hour."

"Oh." Cadence sounded vaguely disappointed. "He was kind of a dick to me. Completely unappreciative of my services."

The Doctor sighed. "Well, to be fair, your _services_ were in actuality a ruse to drug him and render him unconscious.

"Yeah well, _he_ didn't know that." she mumbled. "So now Turlough and Haven can carry on their part of the plan, right?"

The Doctor nodded. "The device is set to release the sleeping agent in twenty more seconds." He consulted his watch. "It takes around a minute for the Vicellan gas to disperse completely. Once that time has passed, I'll send the signal for Turlough to go in with the TARDIS."

"I can't believe we _did_ it." Cadence gushed. "We actually got that device into the room without being found out."

"We aren't home free yet." he reminded her sensibly. "Let's find a spot to stash our carts and find our way back-"

"Oi! What are you two doing then?" The familiar voice of the Guardian that Cadence had hobbled made them both jump.

They turned around to see that he had just limped around the corner toward them and he wasn't alone. An older Hispanic woman wearing a uniform identical to the one Cadence was wearing pointed in their direction.

"What the hell is _this_?" the woman shouted in a Spanish accent. "That _puta_ has my cart!"

" _Goddamn Delores."_ Cadence muttered resentfully.

The Doctor looked back at her and saw that at last she actually looked afraid. The jig was up. They were caught.

He backed toward her and said in a low voice: "When I say run, run..."

* * *

 _TARDIS, Aquarius Epta Storage Hold, 2080 A.D._

"Ugh, I can't _stand_ this waiting." Haven was pacing the console room, going out of her mind with worry for her sister.

Turlough was still seated calmly in the jumpseat. "Well, why don't we pass the time chatting?" he suggested in a reasonable tone.

Haven glanced his way. The truth was, one of the reasons she'd started the pacing was to put a bit of distance between Turlough and herself.

Not only did his touch scramble her mind but even his proximity was disconcerting. She understood what was going on but she could hardly believe it. At thirty four years old, Haven was experiencing her first crush. The object of the aforementioned crush did not seem to notice.

She realized he was still waiting for a response and she also realized she had no legitimate reason not to so she shrugged nonchalantly and reclaimed the jumpseat across from him. Haven Barber may not know much about men or crushes but she was an expert at hiding her feelings when the situation required.

"So tell me something about you." she began. "How did you meet the Doctor?"

Turlough uttered a nervous laugh and scratched the side of his face. "Uhh... yes, well. That's a bit tricky to explain. Suffice to say, an old Maths teacher of mine introduced us some time back in England. We've been traveling together ever since."

"Hmm." she made an effort to sound like an interested acquaintance rather than a nervous wreck. "And it's just the two of you boys then?"

He raised his eyebrows as he explained, "Well, it hasn't always been that way. For a while we had Nyssa and Tegan along with us. Definitely _not_ boys."

At the mention of the two women companions, Haven felt adrenaline shoot through her system along with a slight twinge of pain somewhere in her chest. Jealousy, she guessed. She cleared her throat and couldn't stop herself from asking. "Were Nyssa and Tegan your... girlfriends?"

Turlough laughed out loud at this and shook his head emphatically. "No. No way. Nyssa was quite young and Tegan... well." He chuckled again and made a face. "Tegan was something else altogether."

The key piece of information that Haven learned from his answer was that having a girlfriend wasn't necessarily out of the question for Turlough. He just seemed adamant that neither of the women he'd traveled with fit the bill.

She was encouraged. She scooted forward in her seat. "So where are you from?" she asked, meeting his eyes boldly.

Turlough grew visibly uncomfortable. He sighed. "Haven, there's something I really should tell you that you aren't going to like." he said reluctantly.

She narrowed her eyes, wondering what on earth he was getting at. "What?"

"You see, I'm not exactly _from-_ "

A cacophonous chirping sound interrupted his words. He clumsily pulled the signal device from his pocket. It was definitely the signal to alert them.

"Shit." Haven uttered, her eyes wide. "They did it! That means they did it, right?"

Turlough smiled, nodding. "Yes. And now it's time we did our part." He stood quickly and rushed around to the far side of the console. He tapped a few keys, then pulled the lever and the engines of the mysterious ship began to make a wheezing, chuffing noise.

Haven hung on to her seat with a death grip, not sure if she would be jostled about. But before long, the wheezing sound faded away and Turlough pressed a button to pull up the scanner screen.

Haven gasped. They were inside the data centre!

"Let's make this fast!" Turlough instructed, activating the door control. He held up a small thumb drive. "We'll put everything we find on this."

They stepped out into the dimly lit computer server room.

Haven immediately noticed an unconscious man on the floor beside a row of 3-D printers. She bent down, looking at him curiously. He appeared to be breathing...

"This must be the mainframe." Turlough exclaimed suddenly. She went to join him at the computer terminal.

Turlough's fingers were already flying over the keyboard as he attempted to find a vulnerability to exploit. The computer beeped angrily as he encountered an error screen.

"There's always a back door..." Turlough murmured as he tried a different route. The computer beeped again. He made a sound of frustration.

"Come on, _come on_!" Haven coaxed anxiously. She glanced back at the tech guy, still unmoving on the floor. "The Doctor said we'd have less than an hour. And who knows how long it's been already."

"Feel free to chime in any time with a brilliant idea." Turlough countered through clenched teeth. He scratched the side of his head and squinted at the monitor. "The security protocols on this system aren't like anything I've seen..."

Haven exhaled heavily and gave Turlough a hard shove, her patience gone. "Out of the way."

Turlough stumbled and had to right himself on the desk. He gave her a dirty look after he composed himself once more. "Your turn now I suppose?" Turlough observed dryly.

She closed out the error window and launched command prompt. At the Z:\ prompt, she typed _users\host\CACLS_

A string of code appeared on the DOS screen and she looked it over. A half smile formed on her face and she quickly tapped out her next command. She grunted her approval at the next line that appeared and then typed /g. The computer rebooted.

Turlough stepped closer to see what she was doing. "Why'd you restart?" he demanded angrily. "Need I remind you we're sort of on a tight schedule here."

"Idle down chainsaw." she soothed. "Watch and learn."

The terminal restarted and booted directly into the security log in page. She typed _host_ in the user name slot and hit enter. A password populated itself in the password slot. She clicked _OK_ and they were in.

Turlough gasped. " _How did you...!?_ "

She chuckled. "My childhood was very boring. It was learn code or arts and crafts." She held her hand out for the thumb drive. "My sister makes a _mean_ macaroni necklace."

He placed the drive in her hand and out of the corner of her eye, she saw that he was looking at her with total admiration. "You're amazing." he breathed. "A total genius."

She felt herself blushing and quickly deflected. "Perhaps it only seems that way cause you're not so bright?"

He laughed and rolled his eyes. "Finish up there, Queen of the Hackers."


	8. Chapter 8

_Giannes 3019 A.D._

River felt she didn't have a choice now. She _had_ to investigate the mine. Just what the hell was so valuable and important that somebody was willing to go to all this effort? To lie and scheme and enslave other human beings?

She was well and truly angry now and had become fixated on getting to the bottom of this dirty and corrupt scenario. She became virtually fearless in her single-minded wrath. There was nothing in this galaxy more dangerous than River when she was fearless.

She found a side entrance into the mine from the compound. Another set of stone stairs led down into the steep dark tunnel. Her footfalls echoed in the darkness. She shone the torch all around, her eyes narrowing. Some type of mineral or crystal glistened blue on the walls and ceiling.

She shook her head, approaching the wall for closer examination. "Don't tell me this is all about some bloody, sparkly rocks." she muttered.

She dug her trowel back out of her pocket and chipped some of the blue crystal away. A small cylindrical chunk about the size and shape of a tube of lipstick broke free and she pocketed it. As soon as she could, she intended to have the crystal analyzed.

Before she could turn to head back up the stairs and into the compound, she heard the sound of an energy weapon discharge and felt a familiar tingly surge in her right shoulder. She turned quickly to see two androids walking toward her. It appeared that they were coming from an area deeper in the mine.

 _Splendid_. Her eyes narrowed and she pulled out her own weapon. Before either android could fire off another blast, River blew one of the android's heads clean off. The android wobbled and made some burbling noises before falling over. Good. At least she knew the bastards weren't indestructible.

The other android stopped advancing toward her but fired its weapon again. The blast hit her square in the chest, once more having no effect on her. River leaned against the wall casually, smirking at the robotic creature.

"Got anything else there big boy?" she taunted, aiming her weapon at its head.

The android lowered it's weapon and seemed to be studying her. It emitted a sharp whirring noise. Then it began making a series of sounds, ranging from short and clipped to more complex syllables. It was almost as if it were trying to _speak..._

River's head tilted slightly, intrigued. "Are you trying to communicate? I'm afraid I don't understand what you're saying."

The android continued to chatter indistinctly, the sounds beginning to sound more like words, albeit words in an unrecognizable language. The flow and inflection kept changing. Like it was trying out different dialects on her. If the assholes weren't trying to kill her, she'd be thoroughly impressed.

"English." she coaxed, enunciating carefully. "Do you know English? Human English?"

The android emitted another sharp, whirring noise. Then suddenly, it said the words, "Speak human English." in a flat, mechanical voice.

"Holy crap." River's eyes widened but she didn't let her astonishment shift her focus. She cleared her throat, eager to learn anything she could. "Who made you? Where are your people?" Curious as she was, she still kept her weapon trained on the android's head.

The whirring noise again, followed by a surprisingly clear (if robotic) reply. "We are the protectors. We were created for protection. We come from the neighboring world. You come from elsewhere."

River blinked, taking in the new information. "Neighboring world?" she repeated. "You mean in this star system? Your people are in this star system, but _not_ on this planet?"

"This is correct." the android confirmed. "You are other. You come from elsewhere. You have invaded."

"So you just go around _destroying_ anyone who comes to this planet?" she scoffed incredulously. "My crew didn't mean any harm. We came looking for our friends. This isn't even your home world. What right do you have to deal with invaders here?" Her trigger finger was becoming very heavy but she held her temper in check. Only just.

The android seemed to take some time to assimilate her words before responding. "We are the protectors. We were created for protection after the humans first came to steal our people's most precious minerals."

River looked around her at the blue crystals sparkling in the stone tunnel and realization dawned. These androids were created to protect the crystals. And more specifically, they were created because those greedy bastards from the Aquarius Epta Project had come along all those years ago. What the hell was so special about these blue crystals anyway?

The android had apparently tired of the conversation and began to advance on her. While it didn't seem to have a weapon apart from the one that had proven ineffective on her, it was an inhumanly strong creature and could easily tear her to pieces.

River backed toward the opening, hoping to stall for just a little more information. "Tell me more about your people. Can you provide a specific location?" She continued to back away, not feeling very hopeful that she'd get any more answers.

The android whirred again. "Declination -05° 02' 28.59" Right Ascension 23 hours 06 minutes and 29.283 seconds." It continued to advance on her ominously despite its willingness to chat.

Celestial coordinates! River turned the numbers over in her head, trying to figure out if she recognized them. The Time Lord part of her mind meant she had a near perfect memory for figures. The human part of her mind meant it sometimes took a while to recall those memories.

Then she noticed two more androids heading toward her behind her new friend. She holstered her gun and reached for the explosive in her pocket.

"Declination -05° 02' 28.59"..." she was muttering under her breath, still backing away quickly, trying to work out the coordinates.

"You are other. You come from elsewhere. You have invaded." The android in front informed her flatly.

She had the explosive out at the ready. "Yes, yes. Get some new material. It's like..." Suddenly her eyes flew open. "Trappist 1f! Felix. Your home planet is Felix." She had backed completely out of the mine into the snowy night. None of the androids had quite reached the mouth of the tunnel. "Its been fun. Don't take it personally."

She entered a 3 digit code on the device and threw it into the tunnel, quickly diving to the right and rolling across the snowy ground. The explosion seemed to shake the whole world and burst her eardrums. They were throbbing and there was a ringing in her ears as she looked back up, swinging her torch around. The tunnel was gone. The mine had collapsed in on itself, the rockfall covering the androids.

She breathed a sigh of relief and climbed back to her feet, dusting snow off her legs and backside.

She shook her head in a futile effort to rid herself of the ringing in her ears. A small price to pay for her escape.

She headed back to Penumbra, her gun held ready for any lurking droids. She had a bit more to go on now. She knew why the androids were hostile toward human visitors. They were simply protectors of whatever those blue crystals were.

The question remained: whom were the androids protecting the crystals for?

* * *

 _Operations Deck, Aquarius Epta 2080 A.D._

"I've no idea where they went." the Guardian admitted with exasperation. "One minute they were in the corridor, and it's like they turned the corner and just vanished."

"How very mystical of them. " The arrogant man replied. "Tell me Russell... are you quite sure there was a man? That it wasn't the two sisters that have been causing trouble around here?"

"No. It was definitely a man with her. A blonde bloke... German I think." Russell the Guardian cleared his throat. "They assaulted me, probably broke my foot. Otherwise I'd have got to them sooner."

"Yes. Your bravery will go down in the history books. A chapter called. 'Attack of the Runaway Janitor's Cart.'" The smug man was clearly the boss and the Guardian remained silent in the face of his withering sarcasm.

"Go have your foot looked at in the med bay." The man commanded. "Then write up a complete incident report. We'll have to go over the surveillance footage at once. I expect they were transmatted away."

"Yes sir Mr. Porter." Russell acquiesced before limping away. The man, Porter, stomped off as well, right past the abandoned linen cart.

After a time, a head poked out from a pile of sheets in the linen cart.

"Is the coast clear now?" Cadence whispered.

"So it would seem." the Doctor announced. "Quickly now." He jumped out of the linen cart and helped Cadence out.

Now that the excitement had died down, they were fortunate enough to find the corridors mostly empty again.

"We can get to the storage hold down _this_ way, correct?" The Doctor pointed.

"You tell _me_ Mister Time Lord." Cadence sassed. "You were the one who went dancing around inside my head."

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Come on then."

They ran down the corridor, stopping at an intersecting hallway to cautiously check both ways. At the end of the corridor, they turned right and were soon right outside the door where they'd first met.

Cadence pressed her hand to the wall plate and the door slid open. They made their way through the stale air of the dark room, toward where the TARDIS had been parked for the past couple days.

No TARDIS. "Hmm." The Doctor said. "Not back yet."

"Well how can you tell it's not just invisible like before?" Cadence wondered.

"Because I can sense when she's around of course." The Doctor answered simply. He leaned against a shelving unit and sighed, trying not to make his concern for the others evident. "So tell me about this Mister Porter fellow. Seems to think a lot of himself."

Cadence scoffed. "Yeah, I suppose he's kinda the big cheese around here. Larry Porter. Pretty 'orrible actually. We were all terrified of him as kids. Used to scare each other, say 'Watch it or Mr. Porter will come after you.'" She actually shuddered, as if just the thought of the man made her skin crawl.

Suddenly the doors whooshed open once more and a Guardian's voice drifted over. "I'm just gonna 'ave a look around again. Porter wanted us to search the whole deck just in case. Go check next door."

A beam of light from a torch cut through the darkness as the man began his search.

"Oh fuck." Cadence whispered, now in a panic. "What the _hell_ do we do now?"

"Just keep quiet and stay calm." The Doctor whispered back. "Surely they should be here any time. The hour's nearly up."

"We gotta hide. He's going to come back this way soon." Cadence was tugging on his sleeve, trying to pull him back behind a shelf.

The Doctor shook his head. "Stay right where you are. Just trust me." Even as he spoke, he hoped he was right. What if something had gone wrong back in the data centre? Had he reminded Turlough about the fast return switch before they'd gone?

And then a beam of light was shone directly into his eyes. " _Hey_! You two there! Stay right where you are. We've been looking for you." The Guardian was fast approaching.

"Oh no." Cadence cried, frozen where she stood, grasping the Doctor's arm for protection.

It was then the Doctor felt a little tickle in the back of his mind and he relaxed at last. Relief washed over him and he smiled congenially at the Guardian.

"Excuse me sir." He said in his most charming manner. "Would you be so kind as to tell us which way to Wessex?"

The Guardian stopped short, puzzled. "You... What?"

A familiar wheezing, groaning sound began to grow louder and louder until the TARDIS materialized right around the Doctora and Cadence.

The console room faded slowly into view and Turlough and Haven appeared alongside the console, at first almost as phantoms until the wheezing sound faded away and the details of their surroundings became solid.

"Excellent timing Turlough." the Doctor greeted, immediately heading for the console to get them away from there.

"You two shouldn't have gotten all dressed up on our account." the redhead smirked at their housekeeping uniforms.

"Cadence! You're okay!" Haven shouted, running over and grabbing her sister in a big hug.

"So glad to see you Hotaru." Cadence said softly. When the hug ended, she exhaled loudly. "Please tell me you two got something out of all this."

Haven grinned slyly. "Oh I should think we got quite a bit." She held up the thumb drive. "All right here." She cut her eyes over to Turlough who was looking at her in admiration.

The Doctor, who had just finished setting them off on their next destination, held a hand out for the drive. "Excellent work. We should take a look."

Haven handed the drive over and yawned noisily. She muffled it with a hand. "Oh jeez. Sorry. I think I'm just about wiped out."

"Same." Cadence muttered, giving her sister an affectionate squeeze.

"It is quite late." The Doctor suddenly realized. "Why don't you two girls get a few hours rest while we look over what we have here. We're perfectly safe where we've landed."

Haven and Cadence shared a look. "Landed?" Cadence asked incredulously. "You mean... we're no longer on the ship?"

The Doctor grinned. "We're not. I've just landed us on the planet Giannes. Isn't that where you said your friend River Song intends to meet you?" he asked Haven.

"Well... yes..." Haven blinked. "So you're saying, when we walk out of the TARDIS, we'll actually be on a _planet_?" She sounded a bit rattled at the prospect and looked to Turlough for reassurance.

"It's fine." He told her gently, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Go to sleep. The planet will be here waiting when you wake up."

Haven beamed at him, and suddenly ran up and gave him a hug. "Good night Turlough." She said shyly, before turning around quickly and joining her sister.

"Good night Hacker." Turlough called after her. Haven giggled as the sisters left the console room and headed off to bed.

There was a moment of awkward silence before the Doctor said, "Right. Shall we take a look at what we've got?" He headed to the computer and plugged the drive into a slot on the control panel.

"That girl is a right _genius_ with computers." Turlough marveled, still staring at the door she'd just exited through. "I've never seen anything quite like it."

The Doctor chuckled as he pulled the drive up on the directory. "Nor have I." he murmured.

Turlough seemed to snap out of his little moment of enchantment and joined the Doctor at the console.

The Doctor squinted at the monitor and tapped a few keys. "It may take a moment or two to unpack all these files."

Turlough was apparently still off in his own world. "Hmm." was his only reply as he stared unseeing down at his own hands.

The Doctor turned to him. "Are you quite alright?" he asked, knowing the answer but thoroughly amused at the state the young man was in. The young man who was usually quite self absorbed and often bad-tempered.

Turlough shook his head, looking muddled. "Y-y-yes. I think so. Perhaps there was still a bit of that Vicellan gas in the air back at the data centre..."

The Doctor chuckled once more, keeping an eye on the computer. "Perhaps so."

Turlough leaned against the console, suddenly looking quite troubled. "The truth is, I haven't felt quite myself all night. I suppose it was just nerves at carrying out our little plan. But I've had that jumpy feeling of fight or flight in my system for hours now." He chewed at his lip.

The Doctor crossed his arms and feigned a solemn expression. "Tell me Turlough. Did you happen to notice that this feeling increased in direct relation to Haven's proximity to you."

Turlough blinked. "Well, yes. Actually, now that you mention it..." He was completely clueless.

The Doctor sighed and rubbed at his eyes. "Oh for goodness sake Turlough. You have a _crush_ on Haven. And if _I'm_ the one that has to explain that fact to you, you _are_ in big trouble."

* * *

 _TARDIS, Next Morning_

The Doctor had asked the sisters to sit down with them over tea at the kitchen table. He wished to discuss what he'd found in the files. He looked more troubled than Haven had ever seen him.

Turlough looked angry, seemed unable to meet her eyes. Surely not angry at _her_ for she hadn't done anything wrong. Had she?

The Doctor cleared his throat once they were all seated. "I haven't finished reading through everything-there is quite a lot of material there- but I did learn an awful lot last night." He scratched his head. "None of it good. Anyway, I think I now understand what this project has been about from the beginning."

"Not colonization I'm guessing." Cadence said in a flat voice. She looked closed off, almost indifferent to the matter at hand, while Haven herself felt raw and exposed. She was actually quite scared to hear the truth.

"I'm rather afraid it never had anything to do with colonization." He sighed and reached into a pocket of his coat. He set some pictures on the table. "Have you ever seen this before?" he asked as the sisters took a look at the photographs.

Each of the photographs were of some type of blue crystal. It was pretty but not familiar. Haven shook her head and Cadence shrugged.

"They call it Giannesite." Turlough supplied. He sat back and crossed his arms, looking bitter. "I'll let you guess why."

"Well I imagine it's some sort of gemstone or something they found on Giannes...?" Haven guessed.

The Doctor nodded. "It's a mineral completely new to humans. Found only on this planet. The advance exploration team found it and brought it back. Once scientists discovered its properties, a chain of events was set in motion which led to the Aquarius Epta Project."

"Wait a minute." Cadence piped up finally, looking annoyed. "You're saying this is all about somebody on earth wanting these blue rocks?"

"Well, these _rocks_ as you call them, are very unique." The Doctor explained. "The elements that make them up are like nothing earth scientists had ever _seen_. At first it seemed that their main value was medicinal in nature. They developed a compound from the mineral that seemed to cure just about anything. And I do mean _anything._ "

"Whoa." Haven breathed. "Some pretty impressive rocks."

"But..." Turlough interjected. "Naturally there wasn't much urgency to get more of the crystals until they discovered that they could also _weaponize_ some of the minerals' properties."

"Weaponize?" Haven and Cadence said in unison.

The Doctor exhaled heavily. "The minerals were found to have molecular dispersal properties. They could be used to literally wipe anyone or anything out of existence, leaving no trace behind."

Haven blinked. "Well that's... that's horrible." she shook her head. "Who would want that type of power?"

"Ever heard of Carr Enterprises?" Turlough asked.

Cadence narrowed her eyes and pointed at him. "You know, that does sound familiar. I think my mum might've mentioned somethin about them in one of her journal entries."

"No surprise really." the Doctor murmured. "Carr Enterprises funded the entirety of the Aquarius Epta Project. They worked with many government entities and other organizations to develop the program but Carr was behind it all the time. The contracts your parents signed- that everyone from Gen 1 signed- were contracts drawn up by Carr's attorneys."

"So what's Carr got to do with these crystals then?" Cadence wondered.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows and shook his head as if even _he_ couldn't believe what he was about to say. "Apparently Carr Enterprises _owns_ the planet Giannes. They made the acquisition shortly after the seven planets were discovered."

"They _own_ Giannes?" Haven sputtered. "How the 'ell can anyone own a bloody _planet_?"

"Capitalism at its finest." Turlough smirked.

"Anyway, why is all this centered on Giannes?" Haven asked, puzzled. "We were always taught that there were _three_ planets in the Trappist system that were habitable. Elpida, Felix and Giannes."

"Yes, well. That was what Carr Enterprises led everyone to believe when they were developing the supposed colonization project." The Doctor shrugged. "And in theory, Elpida, Felix and Giannes _are_ in fact in the habitable zone. But what the advance exploration team found was that Elpida is a poisonous wasteland and Felix is inhabited by hostile lifeforms."

"So Giannes is all there is" Cadence stated. "A planet with these valuable crystals."

Haven sighed. "So I'm guessing they aren't bringing us along for amusement's sake. What's our role in all this then?"

The Doctor and Turlough shared a look. Turlough at last looked up and met Haven's eyes. He looked beyond uncomfortable. "The company needed workers to mine the crystal. But since everything was kept so secret, they couldn't get the funding for the large scale operation they knew it would be." He seemed to run out of words, he looked so upset. But Haven was getting the picture.

The Doctor picked back up. "The executives at Carr took advantage of all the hype in the media about the new light speed engineering in the space program and all the rumors going around about colonization. They saw their chance and they took it."

Cadence laughed, a harsh, bitter bark of a laugh. "Fucking charming. They meant us to be slaves. They brought our parents on board to give birth to a generation of fucking slaves." At last the apathy had left her face. She looked absolutely stricken.

Haven knew the feeling.


	9. Chapter 9

_Giannes, 3019 A.D._

" _But then... then I heard something that stopped me in my tracks. I heard Isabelle say to Jonas, 'We'll all be much better off once we've done away with the lot of Gen 1. It's the only way to keep their damn mouths shut about everything_.'" Leola uttered a nervous chuckle of disbelief. " _I thought she must be joking at first. Or that I misheard. But then Jonas replied. 'It's not like there's room for all of us anyway. This ship was never intended to house two generations long term. And don't get me started on the shortage of supplies_.'"

River shook her head, seriously wishing she could get her hands on a good strong drink. She had skipped ahead to some of Leola's later entries while she waited for the vortex manipulator to finish charging. Events had taken a decidedly disturbing turn.

Leola's voice now angry. " _Of course Rhett says I must be mistaken. That they were only havin a laugh_." She scoffed. " _He doesn't believe me about anything at all though does he? He sure as shit didn't believe me when I told him what that bastard Coordinator did to me last year in the canteen. I feel I don't even know him anymore_." The woman's contempt for her husband was palpable. " _But this. I must find someone to believe me. Because I'm frightened_."

The recording ended and that was it. Leola Jae Barber's very last recorded words. And that was when River knew for sure that she had a new mission. She sat forward in the captain's seat of _Penumbra_ and stared unseeing at the digital chronicle device in her hands.

Her Time Lord instincts told her she couldn't interfere with Leola's story, particularly now that it had been set in stone for her by listening to it. Paradox loop and all that. (If she went back and fixed things in 2046 and these recordings weren't there for her to find in 3019, she would have never known to go back and fix things.)

But Leola had given birth to two beloved daughters on board _Aquarius Epta_. Cadence Jae and Haven Lane. And they seemed to be the only thing that brought joy back to Leola's miserable life. River had little doubt that those bastards murdered every single member of Gen 1 and left those girls defenseless with no protector. Nobody to watch out for them at all.

Well River would just have to see what she could do about that.

She took a deep breath and shook off the feeling of helplessness that seemed to weigh on her when she listened to Leola's recordings. It was too late for Leola unfortunately, but there might be some way that River could still intervene on Leola's daughters' behalf.

When she checked the vortex manipulator once more, she was pleased to see it was fully charged and ready to go. Now she'd need to plan her next move.

She knew she'd be foolish to go check out the planet Felix without any kind of back up. A single person- even a person like River- would be no match for an entire race of hostile lifeforms.

And so River considered what point in the timeline would be most ideal. She didn't want to wage a war on board the ship. She couldn't very well pull the girls out of there... River's eyes narrowed. _Or could she?_

Most of those old passenger starships had at least one or two tiny skiff ships on board that were there for short excursions- and as potential life boats in case of a disaster. And she really couldn't think of a better reason for a lifeboat than to rescue Leola's daughters from that horrible slave ship.

If River could go back to when the girls were small, perhaps she could take them away and find them a family somewhere in this great big galaxy.

River knew she was playing with fire. She also knew what the Doctor would say. But River was set on her course. She was determined to find some way to help Cadence and Haven, all because she felt a strange kinship with their mother, whom she'd never even met.

There was something about Leola Barber and her sad story. Especially her tragic relationship with her husband. In the end, she'd despised Rhett for steering her toward her ultimate fate. She despised herself for letting him. But she also still loved him somehow. She still wanted his attention even if she also still wanted to hurt him.

In one of her later journal entries, Leola had said, " _I don't know why I still care the way I do. I shouldn't. But it turns out that my love for him is poison that lives in my veins. I can't shake it, I can't let it go. And I can't love him enough to make him be the man I need him to be. And I can't hurt him enough. Not in a million years could I ever hurt him enough to make him know my pain_."

It all hit pretty close to home for River, (with some obvious differences), and so she made a promise to a dead stranger. And she intended to keep that promise.

River stood and put her sidepack on once more. She strapped on the vortex manipulator before taking one last look around the cockpit of _Penumbra_. She sighed. There was nothing she could do for the people they'd lost here. But there was still _something_ River could do.

She flipped up the cover on the device and programmed it to take her where she wished to go. Now she had to choose when. It would have to be sometime between 2047 after Leola was gone and before 2080 when they were set to land on Giannes.

She set the coordinates, then entered the year 2047. She'd find those two girls before anyone had a chance to harm them and shape them. River flinched, her mind flashing back to Madame Kovarian for a moment. Then she hit the actuate button on the device and let the discharge of artron energy knock those memories right out of her mind.

River found herself _zapped_ into a dark room. She quickly dug in her side pack for a torch and took a look around. It was some sort of storage facility, she was assuming on board _Aquarius Epta._ It took a moment before she began to suspect this must be the very storage room she'd searched back on Giannes. It wasn't that it looked the same though. It was that haunted feeling, back with her once more.

River squinted into the darkness. The feeling this room gave her. She shuddered. Strange, but River suddenly had the idea that maybe the TARDIS was calling to her through time and space. Perhaps, warning her of something? Had the Doctor been here on board this ship? In this very room?

River shook her head. Ridiculous. If the Doctor had been here, none of this would have happened.

She headed for the double doors at the far end of the room. She needed to quit procrastinating and try to locate those girls.

Just as she neared the doors, they slip open, seemingly of their own accord. River automatically turned off her torch, stepped back into the shadows, and kept still.

A brunette woman of around thirty walked into the room carrying a basket and pressed the light switch button on the wall. The lights flickered, then immediately went out.

"Sonofabitch." the woman muttered. "Why do I always get sent on supply runs." She clicked on her flashlight and made her way across to some shelves.

Was this one of those awful Coordinator people Leola had spoken of? It suddenly occurred to River that it might not be a bad idea to use this woman to help her find the girls. Here she was, by herself, separated from the rest of the crew. River touched the energy weapon in her pocket.

The woman was looking the shelves over, selecting items and placing them in her basket. River wondered if this was one of those cruel bitches who had made Leola's life such hell. Her eyes narrowed.

Her voice startled the woman when she said coldly, "Did you know Leola Barber?"

The brunette dropped the basket and all of its contents on to the floor. She aimed her torch with shaking hands in River's direction. "Who's _there_?"

River leaned against the wall, fidgeting with her energy weapon. She squinted up at the torchlight shining in her eyes and offered a smug smile. "The name's River. River Song. And I believe I asked _you_ a question first."

The brunette was still shaking a bit when she answered. "Leola was my mother. Of _course_ I know who she was. What do you want with me?"

A mixture of anger and confusion washed over River. _No_. This couldn't be right. She had programmed the damn thing for 2047...

She cleared her throat and tried to make her voice normal. "What year is this?" she insisted.

The brunette woman blinked. "Um... Well, it's two thousand eighty. Why are you askin me all these mad questions?" She was edging back toward the doors, obviously uncertain of how safe she was alone with this crazy woman who didn't even know what year it was.

2080\. River's eyes closed. What had _happened_? Blasted vortex manipulator. They were usually quite accurate.

She sighed and studied the young woman in the beam of her torch. She was quite beautiful but River could see that she was also quite damaged. She was too late. And now that she'd met her, she couldn't go back any earlier. "What your name?" she asked kindly. "Please don't be frightened. I've come to help."

The young woman took a step toward River, a bit intrigued. "I'm Haven." she answered. "And what makes you think I need any help?"

"Haven Sweetie. Not everything is as it seems." She hesitated for a moment, but then it became clear what she'd have to do. "I have something for you." River reached into her pocket for Leola's digital chronicle.

* * *

 _The TARDIS, Giannes, 2080 A.D._

"So where specifically did this River woman say she would meet up with you?" The Doctor asked Haven.

Haven shrugged. "She said she'd find me."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. "No specified meeting place? She'll just _find_ you?" The Doctor made a sound of exasperation. "Pardon me for saying, but that seems a bit unlikely. There's an entire planet out there."

Haven replied patiently, as if she were dealing with someone who was a bit slow. "I'm not sure _how_ she intends to do so, but she managed to find me on board a ship of thousands of passengers just fine." Haven's faith in River Song seemed every bit as strong as his doubts.

"Tell me Haven. Where exactly were you on the ship when she found you?" the Doctor inquired, chewing at his thumb thoughtfully.

She chuckled. "Didn't I mention? In that same damn store room."

The Doctor blinked. "Interesting..." he murmured, turning away. The Doctor's eyes narrowed. He was growing quite troubled by what he'd heard about this strange woman so far. What was she exactly? A Time Agent? She couldn't be a Time Lord. Could she...?

He looked once again at the picture of perfect darkness on the scanner. The TARDIS had brought them to the night side of the planet and the Doctor assumed there must be a reason for that. They were currently waiting for Turlough and Cadence to get dressed and ready and they'd go out and explore a bit. There were still about 9 hours until _Aquarius Epta_ was set to land on Giannes. They could at least get a lay of the land and formulate a plan ahead of time.

"Alright you two. Are we ready to go take a look at the planet?" Cadence was excited, which was only understandable since she'd spent her entire life on a ship traveling through space. She'd never set foot on a single planet.

The Doctor thought Haven looked more nervous than excited, though she put on a brave face for her sister. "I'm ready!" she declared with false enthusiasm. She kept looking toward the entrance to the corridor, waiting for Turlough to appear.

Finally the red head came bounding through into the console room. "I've brought torches for everyone." he stated, holding them up. He began to pass them out. The Doctor noticed that he seemed reluctant to meet Haven's eyes when he passed a flashlight to her.

The Doctor had already done environment and atmospheric checks so all four were prepared with warm coats and eye protection.

He placed his hat on top of his head and opened the TARDIS doors. "Shall we then?" he asked, gesturing toward the outside.

He led the way out into the darkness. The wind was cold and quite brutal and he lost his hat almost immediately. He sighed and scanned the horizon. "Alright Old Girl. I do hope there's a legitimate reason that you've brought us to this side of Giannes." he muttered under his breath. And that's when he spotted it: the huge compound built into a cliff face right beside an opening to a mine. "Bingo." he whispered.

"Whoa. What is it?" Cadence asked, wide-eyed.

"What's that tunnel there?" Haven asked nervously.

"It's a mine." Turlough explained, stepping closer to her, in an almost protective gesture. "My guess is, it's the source of that mineral, Giannesite."

"But what's with that big building?" Cadence marveled.

They began walking toward it. "It appears to be an operations facility for the mine." the Doctor replied darkly. He believed they'd stumbled upon the destination for _Aquarius Epta_ and the intended new home for all the passengers.

They trudged along in silence, the Doctor disgusted with the whole scenario. There had to be something they could do to help all these people.

He led them up some stone stairs, in through the front door. He was surprised to find the electricity working when he tried the light switch. The facility was a bit dusty but in amazingly good shape otherwise.

"Do you suppose there are already people here?" Turlough asked in a low voice as he tucked his torch into a pocket of his coat. His suspicious eyes slid around the reception area they were standing in.

Tasteful framed pictures hung on the walls. The reception desk was solid wood and there were a few chairs against one wall for waiting people to sit. There were even a few fake potted plants for decoration.

"One of the documents in the project files spoke of an advance team preparing the mine for the ship's arrival." The Doctor whispered back. "I suppose they would be in this facility."

They made their way through the well lit reception area, further into the building. They were headed into the part of the compound that was built into the side of the mountain.

"If there are people here, they must be used to this cold." Haven murmured , rubbing at her arms in an attempt to keep warm. "You would think if they had power, they'd find a way to better heat this place."

The Doctor had been thinking the very same thing. They walked through a series of barracks style sleeping quarters into an administration wing of the building.

On one wall, the Doctor noticed an environmental control thermostat. The heat was turned to _off_. His eyes narrowed and he flipped the switch to _on_.

"These desks are all empty." Turlough pointed out, walking around the office space. "There's not a computer or a pencil. Not a coat or a coffee." He scratched his head.

"Look here!" Cadence called from the back of the administrative section. "Where the important people are meant to sleep." She muttered dryly.

They walked back into the hallway where Cadence was standing and began to check each of the rooms off the hallway. More like hotel rooms than communal sleeping quarters here.

There was nobody. Nothing.

"Am I the only one who finds it slightly disconcerting that there are no personal belongings anywhere?" Turlough insisted. "I haven't seen so much as a pair of socks in any of these rooms."

"Maybe you misread the files." Haven suggested, shaking her head. "There's clearly nobody here yet."

The Doctor had found a door leading out into the mine. "Well we haven't checked _everywhere_ yet, now have we?" he grinned at Haven and turned his flashlight back on before heading down into the darkness.

* * *

 _Aquarius Epta Project Mining Operations, Giannes, 2080 A.D._

Haven sighed and threw her hands up in exasperation. "Is he out of his bloody mind? It's obvious nobody is here."

Turlough chuckled. "When traveling with the Doctor, you learn to leave no stone unturned. No matter what might scurry out."

Haven shuddered at his words and he must've noticed because he placed a hand comfortingly on the back of her neck, guiding her toward the door. "Come on. I'll be right beside you. Everything will be fine."

She had been freezing cold until he touched her. Now she could feel warmth spread throughout her body. She was too flustered to speak so she just nodded. She pretended not to notice how her sister was side-eyeing her, clearly amused.

Cadence was the first to follow the Doctor down the stairs into the mine.

Haven took a deep breath and remarked flippantly. "I suppose I'd better get used to it. Since I'm apparently meant to be a miner."

Turlough gave her a serious look. "Not if I have anything to do with it." he told her firmly.

She turned and headed through the door before he could see the pleased smile that spread across her face.

"Wow." Haven exclaimed when she reached the bottom of the stone steps. Turlough was right behind her down the stairs. She shone her torch all around her, marveling at the sparkling blue in the rock. "It's beautiful." she breathed.

"Quite." the Doctor murmured from a few meters away. He was right up close to the wall, shining his torch on the surface and peering closely.

Suddenly a bright flash of energy seemed to engulf him and he fell against the wall, dropping his torch in surprise.

"What the _hell_?" Cadence shouted, running over to see if he was alright.

"Uh Doctor... there is most definitely someone else here." Turlough grabbed Haven by the hand and was backing quickly away from the dark cave that led deeper into the mine.

Haven screamed out loud when she saw what he was looking at. A tall robot-looking man was approaching fast, brandishing some type of weapon. A weapon it had apparently already shot at the Doctor.

"Everyone _run_!" the Doctor shouted, grabbing Cadence by the arm and heading toward the outside entrance to the tunnel. They turned a corner just in time to avoid another shot fired by the robot.

Turlough was pulling Haven along and she thought her lungs were going to burst they were running so fast. Suddenly there was a strange electrical _zap_ behind them, followed by another loud energy discharge and a _clank_. The footfalls of the robot man stopped and were replaced by a weird mechanical murmur.

Haven couldn't resist looking back. She gasped. The robot man was missing its head and after a moment, it toppled over to the ground. She dragged her feet to put on the brakes. "Stop!" she instructed Turlough.

She turned and shone her flashlight around. What she saw there caused a huge grin to spread across her face. "River!" she shouted with excitement.

The woman with the wild curly hair was holding the very same weapon she'd been carrying in the supply room a few weeks ago. In fact, she appeared to be wearing the exact same clothes. She looked aggravated.

"You're early!" River scolded. "Your ship isn't due in for several more hours."

Turlough had walked back to join Haven and was regarding River curiously.

"Y-y-yes well..." Haven tried to explain.

"She caught the express." Turlough provided sarcastically. He pointed to the robot she'd mangled with her weapon. "What was that _thing_?"

River approached them, studying the young man. "I don't believe we've been properly introduced."

Her voice was cold and it was apparent from her grip on the weapon that she hadn't ruled out using it on him.

"Turlough is a good guy." Haven explained quickly, clasping his hand to prove it.

River stopped short. "I'm sorry." she blinked. "Did you just say _Turlough_?"

Turlough sighed. "Yes. My name is Vislor Turlough. I'm a traveler and I'm here to help. Now are you going to tell me what that _thing_ was?"

River was still staring at him oddly but she did answer his question. "It's called a Protector. They're androids created to protect the minerals."

Turlough blinked. "Protect them from _who_?"

River smirked and finally holstered her gun. "From humans of course." She glanced back behind her. "Now, might I suggest we make our way out of here? They don't usually attack alone."

They had very nearly reached the entrance when they met the Doctor headed back in to check on them.

"Are you alright?" Haven asked him, running over to check. "Did it shoot you?"

"I seem to be fine." he murmured, his attention clearly caught by the stranger that had joined them in the mine.

The stranger who had stopped short and was now staring at the Doctor as if she'd seen a ghost.

"And you must be the infamous River Song." the Doctor guessed, his arms crossed in front of him.


	10. Chapter 10

_Aquarius Epta Project Mine, Giannes, 2080 A.D._

River could hardly believe her eyes.

 _Here_? On this god forsaken planet, forty light years from his usual stomping grounds. The Doctor was _here_?

She sighed. It all began to make sense now. Why the vortex manipulator wouldn't take her back to 2047. How Haven made it to Giannes before _Aquarius Epta_. And of course why the name Turlough sounded so familiar.

She watched the Doctor take measure of her. She couldn't help but feel both annoyed and amused by his obvious disdain for her interference. _Such a bloody hypocrite_ , she thought.

"And you must be the infamous River Song." he guessed in an infuriatingly snarky tone.

It was his fifth incarnation, the blonde with the silly striped trousers. He was wearing a winter coat and was without his hat but she'd know the Doctors' faces anywhere.

She cleared her throat and tried to rein in her emotions. "I am." she replied politely. "And you are...?"

"I'm the Doctor." he told her. "And I have the situation well in hand. I'm not sure that your further involvement is strictly necessary."

River couldn't believe his nerve. She actually laughed out loud. "I'm _sorry_?" She shook her head in disbelief. "Did I just hear you say that you have the situation _well in hand_?" She gestured toward the inside of the mine. "If I hadn't come along, that android would have killed the girls _and_ your companion. What exactly do you believe you have _well in hand_?" She put her hands on her hips.

The Doctor was becoming angry. "There's no evidence to suggest that the android was trying to _kill_ anybody. I was hit by a burst of energy from the gun and I don't seem to be injured at all."

"Believe me, those things _are_ killers." River assured him, starting to raise her voice. "I've seen them in action. I'm fairly certain those guns they carry are molecular dispersal weapons. You should be _thanking_ me."

Instead of replying, he looked over at Turlough and the Barber sisters who were all clearly entertained by the heated discussion. "Let's head back to the TARDIS to get warm." he commanded irritably before turning on his heel and stomping off in that direction.

" _Seriously_?" River uttered incredulously. "You're just going to walk away?"

The Doctor was already quite a distance away with Turlough and Cadence running to catch up. Haven was hovering uncertainly to see what she would do next.

River made an onward gesture. "I suppose we're headed to the TARDIS." she told Haven, shaking her head. Of all the childish, ridiculous behavior. The man couldn't even finish a conversation without...

"Do you know what a TARDIS is then?" Haven suddenly asked her curiously. "Because you sort of sound like you might."

River glanced over at the clever young woman walking beside her and smiled. "Haven, it's quite possible that I know more about the TARDIS than the Doctor himself does." She held a finger to her lips slyly in a shush gesture. "But let's just keep it between us girls. It's best he doesn't know for now."

Haven grinned and nodded her agreement.

When they reached the TARDIS, Turlough was holding the door, waiting for Haven. Interesting. Going on stories she'd heard from the Doctor, River never would have taken Turlough for the chivalrous type.

When River tried to enter the TARDIS, Turlough looked like he was considering stopping her but ultimately just sighed and held the door for her as well.

She looked around at the simple white console room. The TARDIS hummed a greeting at her and she felt instantly at home.

"Where did he go?" she asked Cadence who was hanging her coat on a rack near the doors.

"The Doctor?" Cadence asked. "He said he was headed to the library to do a little research." She was looking at River in a way that wasn't exactly hostile, but certainly not as friendly and trusting as her sister had been.

Cadence was a few inches taller than her sister with blonde hair cut into a flattering pixie style haircut. Her big blue eyes were shrewd. She was every bit the protective big sister. River decided if she was going to keep her promise to Leola, she was going to need to earn her trust. She stepped forward and offered a hand. "We haven't properly met yet. I'm River Song."

Cadence stepped toward her slowly, studying her. She took the offered hand and shook. "Where did you get that device that belonged to my mother?" she asked after a moment of awkward silence.

River blinked. "You get right to it, don't you." She sighed. "I'm afraid I can't tell you everything, but suffice to say, I'm a time traveler like the Doctor is. I came to this planet nearly a thousand years in the future. I found the remains of _Aquarius Epta_ and found your mother's digital chronicle on board."

Cadence looked part confused and part skeptical. "Well that seems an awfully big coincidence, don't you think? We encounter two different time travelers wanting to help us."

"Cadence. Please listen to me." River told her urgently. "Because I need you to trust me. I _do_ want to help you." she sighed. "I listened to most of your mother's journal while I was trying to get off this planet. And her story made me...angry. I decided I would do whatever I could to get the two of you out of there." She raised her eyebrows and shook her head. "I had no idea the Doctor would get to you first."

The blonde woman's expression had softened slightly. "So because you felt bad for my mom, you decided to come find her kids and help them."

River shrugged. "Something like that."

Haven had walked up to join the conversation. "River, would you like to get cleaned up or have some tea or anything? Turlough told me to ask." She was addressing River but seemed to be studying her sister to see how the conversation was going.

River decided to leave the two of them to talk it out. She smiled. "That would be just lovely. But first, I'm going to go have a word with the Doctor in the library. I think it's time we shared our experiences."

* * *

 _The Library, The TARDIS_

The Doctor sat at the wooden table leafing through a book on Molecular Mechanics. He finally found the chapter he was looking for.

" _Molecular Dispersal_." he read out loud, squinting at the pages curiously. The Doctor doubted it was a coincidence that Giannesite was said to have molecular dispersal properties and now this River person was claiming the android's weapons had those same abilities. It would actually all make logical sense if it weren't for the fact that _he_ hadn't been the least bit affected by the weapon's blast.

He turned a few more pages, still not seeing the information he'd been looking for

"A little light reading?" River's voice nearly made him jump out of his skin.

He looked up in irritation. How had _she_ found her way back here? "I imagine you have a perfectly good reason for interrupting me." he said testily.

"I always have good reasons for what I do." she informed him, having a seat at the table across from him. "I think it's time we discuss what's going on here. Exchange information." She sat back, arms crossed, watching him, perfectly confident in herself.

"Excellent idea" the Doctor agreed, crossing his arms, unconsciously mirroring her relaxed pose. "I suggest _you_ start. What exactly are you playing at?"

"What makes you so certain I'm _playing_ at anything?" she wondered. She didn't sound defensive... or even offended. Instead, she seemed merely amused.

"Why did you give that recording device to Haven?" he insisted. "What was the purpose?"

River nodded as if he'd asked a question that met her approval. "I wanted her and her sister to know that things were wrong on that ship. And I knew they wouldn't take the word of some stranger."

The Doctor silently agreed that what she said made perfect sense but he didn't let on. Instead he continued to question her. "How did you come by that device? And how do you know about those android creatures?"

River sighed. "I came to Giannes on a mission with a crew of four in the year 3019. We came across the androids not long after landing." Her expression darkened. "Two of them wiped out my entire crew. I was the only survivor and I was alone on the planet aside from the androids. After I escaped, I found the _Aquarius Epta_ ship with Leola's device on board. Shortly after, I encountered the mine compound. I drew conclusions from both Leola's story and my findings. That was how I decided to go back and try to help the Barber sisters."

The Doctor was somewhat speechless. This woman had clearly been through quite a lot. He was surprised she was holding up so well. He raised his eyebrows and cleared his throat, feeling suddenly guilty for how hard he'd been on her. "I'm sorry that's happened to you. How long were you on Giannes by yourself?"

River seemed surprised at his change in tone. She studied him speculatively before answering. "A couple days I should think." she answered at last. "I was stranded until I could get my vortex manipulator working."

 _Ah_ , the Doctor thought. _A vortex manipulator_. He felt relief wash over him. She couldn't be a Time Lord. No Time Lord would be caught dead traveling in that manner. "Well, in that case, I'm glad that you made it out alive. It sounds like you were very lucky... to be the only survivor."

River regarded him playfully, not looking the least bit upset or traumatized by recent events. "Tell me Doctor. Why do _you_ suppose I survived?"

He was thrown by the sudden shift in the conversation and by the flirtatious way in which she spoke to him. It was like she knew something that he didn't. And if there was one type of person the Doctor didn't trust, it was the type of person with secrets. His jaw tightened, suddenly feeling less sorry for her. "Because you ran faster than the others? Because the androids missed?" He didn't take his eyes off her while he spoke. What _was_ she playing at?

She leaned forward, her hands folded on the table, the amused glint still in her eye. "What if I told you I'm not such a fast runner? What if I told you that they _didn't_ miss?"

The Doctor's eyes narrowed. "You're saying you were hit by the beam from that weapon as well?"

River shrugged. "Five or six times that I can recall for certain. I watched those things disintegrate three of my friends right before my eyes. And yet the weapon didn't leave a mark on me. Just as it didn't on you. Why do you suppose that might be Doctor?"

The Doctor thought back to the beam of energy passing through his body. It had stunned him momentarily but it really hadn't even hurt. Now River was saying that despite the fact she'd seen that same weapon kill others, it had no effect on her either. "This makes no sense." he mumbled, shaking his head.

"And you haven't found anything worthwhile in that chapter on Molecular Dispersal?" River asked cheekily.

"Well I haven't really..." the Doctor froze, his hearts nearly seized in his chest when he realized the implications of what she'd just said. He stood so fast that he actually knocked his chair over. "You can read _Gallifreyan_." he accused as if she'd committed a crime. "River, tell me _who_ exactly _are_ you?"

She sighed, looking as if he was ruining her fun. "I can't _exactly_ tell you that." she informed him. "Spoilers." She shrugged regretfully.

He felt adrenaline flood his system as his mind went back to the error message on the TARDIS computer when he'd done his search on River Song. _Spoilers_ the screen had said. The very word that had sparked that eerie sensation of premonition in him.

The Doctor began to pace the library, trying to shake the feeling that he was in way over his head with this person. After a moment, he stopped in front of her. "I take that to mean you know one of my future selves. That our paths will cross somewhere down the line."

River grinned. "Can't get anything past you." She chewed at her full bottom lip, her green eyes sparkling.

"So... you're a Time Lord then?" he demanded.

She wobbled her hand in the air. "Sort of. It's a bit difficult to explain. Suffice to say, I'm part human and part Time Lord."

The Doctor sat back heavily in his chair. He decided he wasn't going to play her game. She clearly enjoyed holding all the cards and he wouldn't give her the satisfaction. She could just stay a mystery as far as he was concerned. He sighed. "Just tell me what you're driving at then." he urged. "Are you suggesting that the android's weapon didn't work on us because of our... similar physiology?"

River raised her eyebrows. "It stands to reason."

The Doctor studied her for a moment longer, finally feeling he had the upper hand in the conversation.

"Only it doesn't." he told her. Then sat back and smugly watched _her_ wonder for a bit.

Her eyes narrowed. "What's _that_ supposed to mean?" she demanded, almost losing her cool.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Your theory doesn't hold water. There must be another explanation."

She blinked rapidly, and repositioned herself in her seat, obviously annoyed. "You seem very sure of yourself. It's an awfully big coincidence, don't you think?"

The Doctor rubbed at his chin thoughtfully. "There's only one problem."

Now River completely lost her cool. "Oh would you just say it already!"

The Doctor grinned. "Time Lords are _quite_ susceptible to molecular dispersal. It's used on Gallifrey as a form of execution all the time. There's no reason at all that a weapon with molecular dispersal properties shouldn't work on a Time Lord." He sat back, arms crossed, watching her, perfectly confident in himself.

* * *

 _Tegan's Bedroom, The TARDIS_

"River said she listened to most of mum's recordings." Cadence told her quietly. "It's like...maybe she feels she knows her from hearing her story and now feels she needs to protect us." She shrugged, her expression troubled.

Haven took her sister's hand. They had gone back into their bedroom and were sitting on the bed together. "What is it? Do you _really_ not trust her?" Haven prompted.

Cadence sighed, a sad smile coming to her face. "It's just that... I'm not sure which is scarier. Being certain that all people are liars and only out for themselves. Or starting to believe that there is actually _good_ in people."

Haven chuckled and pulled her sister in for a fierce hug. "I know just what you mean." she said softly against the side of her face. "And I happen to think believing is _much_ scarier."

Cadence pulled back and looked at her sister slyly. "So how scary are you finding your budding romance with Turlough?"

Haven could feel herself blushing and as usual, deflected with sarcasm. "Oh yes. We broke into a highly classified computer together. The next step in our courtship is obviously wedding bells."

Cadence rolled her eyes, unimpressed by her sister's attempt at levity. "Come on now. It's blatantly obvious there's something happening there. Even the Doctor can see it and I get the distinct feeling he knows next to nothing about that sort of thing."

Haven sighed and looked down at her hands. After a moment she looked up and shrugged. "I like him." she said simply. Saying it out loud was something of a revelation. She _did_ like him. She actually liked a man. After all the years of being mistreated and used by every man she encountered and feeling certain she'd never be interested in any guy in that way.

Cadence's sly grin turned into a genuine smile that reached her eyes. "I think that's good." she said. "I really do." After a moment, the slyness returned. "And I'm fairly certain he would agree."

Haven giggled and punched her sister on the leg. "Shut up. You don't know everything."

There was a knock on the door just then.

"Who is it?" the sisters shouted in unison, then cracked up laughing.

The door opened a crack and Turlough peeked in, his face apologetic. "Sorry to bother you. The Doctor is still busy in the library with that River person. I was looking through those files and came across something." He shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not sure what to make of it. Perhaps one of you could shed some light..."

Cadence all but launched Haven off the bed. "Haven would be happy to be of assistance. I was just going to take a little nap."

Haven stumbled and had to catch herself on the door handle. She turned back and gave her sister a dirty look, mouthing " _Stupid cow_ " at her.

Cadence grinned back at her broadly before stretching and feigning a melodramatic yawn. "Sorry... just _so_ sleepy."

Haven joined Turlough in the corridor, calling her sister more colorful names than 'stupid cow' inside her head.

"Everything okay?" Turlough asked, cutting into her mental diatribe.

"Of course." she answered quickly. "Why shouldn't it be?"

Turlough shrugged and put his hands in his pockets as they walked. "You and your sister in there talking. Is something troubling you?"

Once again, Haven was touched that he seemed to care about her well-being. She wasn't sure it was a concept she would ever get used to- a man being sensitive and kind. She cleared her throat. "We were discussing River Song. Trying to decide if we should trust her."

They'd reached the control room and headed for the computer on the console. "And what have you decided?" Turlough asked with a half smile.

Haven shrugged. "She seems... genuine. Like she really just wants to help us."

Turlough used the touchpad input device to reopen the file he wished to show her. "And what have you decided about me?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the computer screen. The half smile remained on his face.

Haven swallowed, feeling as if a million fireflies had taken flight inside her stomach. Had he heard them talking? "About... you...?" she stammered.

He turned to look at her, squinting to study her closely. "Have you decided if you should trust me?" he wanted to know.

His question took her by surprise. Only because, she was surprised that he didn't already know the answer.

She nodded, keeping her face impassive. "Yes, I've given it a lot of thought."

Turlough blinked. "...and...?"

A grin broke out on her face and she giggled. "Yes of course I do, you git."

It was his turn to look away, but not before she saw how pleased he was by her answer. He pointed to the computer monitor. "It's this set of documents here." He opened the folder. "They appear to be medical records for both the passengers _and_ the crew. They provide medical histories along with lists of any medications prescribed to each individual." He rubbed his chin. "I noticed something strange. There is one particular drug that _all_ the male passengers are taking daily. There's a different drug that _all_ the Coordinators and Guardians are taking daily. And yet another drug listed as ' _administer as needed'_ on _all_ the passengers' records. I didn't recognize any of the three drugs but I found the blanket prescriptions for them questionable."

Haven's eyes narrowed. "What sort of medicine are you talking about. The only thing we were ever given was antibiotics when needed or headache tablets." She tapped the computer's monitor. "Show me."

He navigated through the folder until he found her record and opened it. The first page showed a recent picture of Haven. Her ID picture. All passengers were meant to carry an ID with them at all times.

Turlough scrolled through slowly. There were a lot of abbreviations and symbols that read as gibberish to her.

"How can you even read half of that?" she wondered, feeling bewildered. "It's like another bloody language."

Turlough shrugged. "I've learned a thing or two in the course of traveling with the Doctor. Humans seem to have a universal code for making notations in medical charts."

Haven crossed her arms unhappily. "Well what's it saying about me?" she demanded, hating being left out of the loop.

"It mostly says you're healthy. You had an ear infection when you were seven." He ran his finger down the screen, reading. "A history of epistaxis- er... nosebleeds before receiving cauterization treatment."

Haven nodded impatiently. "Yes yes...I remember all that. What about the drug you mentioned. Tell me what they've been giving me."

Turlough continued to scroll through the documents. "Here!" he exclaimed when he found it, pointing to the words as he read them out loud. " _Vergessen_ _10mg p.r.n; SL noct._ "

"What the hell does all that mean?" she asked, feeling upset but not surprised that she might have been given something without her knowledge or consent.

Turlough sighed. "All the jargon just means to administer the drug as needed sublingually- meaning under the tongue- in the night."

Haven gave a little harsh laugh, shaking her head. "So they drugged me while I was sleeping. Charming."

"Not just you." Turlough pointed out quickly, closing her file and opening another at random. "Look." He scrolled down and found the very same notation for a man named Louis Cardera. He closed that and opened another, this one Genevieve Soloux. "See. It's everyone."

"And you don't know what that drug is?" she asked.

Turlough cleared his throat. "I've never heard of it before now. But I do happen to know that the word _vergessen_ means 'forget' in German." He was looking her in the eye when he said this. "Do you think it's possible you were made to forget things that happened to you?"

"It would actually explain quite a lot." Haven murmured softly.


	11. Chapter 11

_**A/N Hello there readers! I sincerely hope you're enjoying my latest story. This is my first attempt at writing River Song (aside from a short scene in Stellar Collision) and I am loving it. I love that things aren't so black and white with her. She's tough and seemingly sociopathic at times but also extremely vulnerable and kind at other times. She's also sexy af and a bit of a badass. What's not to love? Anyway, just a heads up that there is some suggestive flirtation in the beginning of this chapter as well as some references to Haven's history of abuse toward the end. If things get any more adult, I will be changing the rating so watch for that. -Ruinous79**_

* * *

 _The Library, TARDIS_

The Doctor still seemed to be waiting for River to reply. He sat back, watching her smugly.

Despite the fact she would very much like to slap him as hard as she could, she regained her composure and objectively assessed the situation. It was clear that he was formulating his own theory about their immunity to those android weapons and it was equally as clear that he wanted her to ask what _he_ thought.

Only, she knew the Doctor too well. River didn't have to ask him anything. All she had to do was wait. He always needed an audience to applaud his cleverness. As soon as he had worked it all out, he would be _bursting_ to tell everyone.

Until then, River thought it best to keep her cards close to her chest. For the time being, she kept the chunk of crystal in her side pack a secret, along with the location of the androids' home world. He seemed determined to keep her at arm's length and once he had _all_ the pieces of the puzzle, what was to stop him from shutting her out completely? This was a game she needed to control from start to finish.

It was a delicate situation, their meeting apparently for the first time in his timeline. The Doctor- _her_ Doctor- had always claimed he hadn't met her this early in his lives, not before the Time War. She could only hope there was a very good reason he didn't remember things that way. Thus far, the TARDIS had given no warning of any paradoxical missteps which made her confident that her future with _her_ Doctor was still perfectly secure.

That didn't mean, of course, she couldn't have a little fun keeping _this_ Doctor off balance.

River put on her most charming smile and got up from her spot seated across from him at the large table. She made her way around to his side, seating herself casually in the chair right next to him.

He gave her a suspicious look but maintained his confident pose, seemingly untroubled by her proximity. She'd just have to see what she could do about that.

She scooted her chair up close to his so that her side was touching his side. His air of smug superiority disappeared almost instantly. He cleared his throat and went back to the book.

Oh, this would be too easy.

"Doctor... it has been a terribly difficult couple of days." River confided, sighing dramatically.

"I _am_ sorry to hear that." he acknowledged politely, turning a page in the ancient tome he was now pretending to read.

River turned so that she was facing him and touched him lightly on the shoulder. She very nearly laughed out loud when he visibly jumped in his seat, but maintained a straight face as she slowly ran one finger down his arm. "I know you aren't exactly thrilled at my involvement with this situation, but I _would_ be eternally grateful if you were to show a bit of hospitality to a fellow traveler."

The Doctor shifted imperceptibly away from her and cleared his throat, finally looking at her. "Well, of course you are welcome to stay on the TARDIS for the night. It doesn't appear there's any other choice." His eyes glanced down at her hand, still touching his arm, then back up to her face. She took her hand back but returned to her previous position with her side pressed against his side.

"Is there any place on this ship of yours for a girl to take a nice, _hot_ shower?" As she spoke, her fingers went to the buttons on her coat and began to take it off. River somehow managed to make the perfectly innocent act of removing an outer layer of clothing seem scandalous.

The Doctor blinked rapidly, then returned his attention to the book. "Yes, there's a shower." he said a little too quickly. "One of the girls can take you back. In fact, why don't you go grab one of them from the control room _now_ , hmm?" His brows drew down in concentration and he even moved the book slightly closer to his chest.

And now for the finishing move.

River placed her hand on his thigh and leaned in conspiratorially. "I was thinking that maybe, _you_ might like to take me back."

The Doctor sighed and removed her hand from his thigh. He was shaking his head incredulously. "What exactly _is it_ with women and showers around here lately?" he sputtered, exasperated. He closed the book he hadn't really been reading anyway and moved his chair further down the table away from her.

She was admittedly curious about his shower comment but didn't say a word. She just crossed her arms in front of her chest and continued to look at him suggestively.

The Doctor rubbed his forehead and tried to regain his composure. "Please t-t-tell me if I have this right." he stammered, he held a hand up in a halting gesture. "You mean to tell me that _you_ were trapped alone on a hostile planet full of killer robots for two days? That your life was in imminent danger and you had to fight just to survive?"

"Mmm hmm." she confirmed, leaning back and crossing one leg over the other.

The Doctor's voice was raising in pitch as he spoke. "This _after_ watching your whole crew gunned down before your eyes?"

"Correct." River told him.

"And _forgive me_ if I'm wrong," the Doctor continued, his eyes narrowed, "but, this _just_ happened to you? You actually _just_ escaped that situation on this very day?"

River thought for a second, then shrugged. "Yes."

"And you're trying to get me into the _shower_ with you?" he sputtered, clearly at wit's end.

River grinned from ear to ear. "Exactly."

The Doctor stood up, knocking over his chair for the second time. "Has anyone ever told you that you might suffer from some sort of personality disorder!?" he shouted. And with that, he turned and retreated from the library.

River laughed and pulled her seat up to the table where the book on Molecular Mechanics lay. That had been even more fun than she'd thought it might be.

She leaned over the book and began to read.

* * *

 _Console Room, TARDIS_

The Doctor stomped into the control room, still shaking his head in disbelief. Turlough was alone at the console studying the computer monitor.

"Doctor, take a look at this!" the redhead commanded without even looking away from the screen.

The Doctor grunted and made his way to Turlough's side who finally looked up and noticed his disposition.

"Anything the matter?" Turlough wondered, studying the Time Lord intently.

The Doctor scoffed. "Only that we've allowed a _lunatic_ on board the TARDIS." He crossed his arms and leaned against the console, exhaling loudly. "There's something _seriously_ wrong with that woman."

Turlough raised his eyebrows. "I assume you are referring to River Song?"

The Doctor nodded and made a face. "You assume correctly."

Turlough's expression turned amused. "What could she _possibly_ have done to make you so red in the face?"

The Doctor cleared his throat, "I don't wish to get into that just now. What did you want to show me?"

Turlough gave the Doctor a rundown of what he'd discovered in the medical records. How certain groups of people were all receiving the same type of medicine. And how Haven had no idea she'd been given something called Vergessen over the years.

The news was troubling indeed. "You should crosscheck the TARDIS datacore to find out what all three of those drugs are." he suggested, rubbing his chin. "And Haven didn't think it was outside the realm of possibility that her memory had been wiped repeatedly?"

Turlough's face grew angry. "She actually said it would explain a lot." he gestured helplessly. "Then she said she wanted to be alone and disappeared into the corridor." It was clear that he was deeply unsettled by the trauma that Haven had sustained all these years and his inability to do anything about it.

The Doctor nodded his understanding. "There are no easy answers for something like this. All you can do is give her space when she needs it and be there when she needs to talk." he offered.

Turlough shook his head and scoffed. "I'm useless. I've no idea the right words to say under these circumstances. What she likely needs is years of therapy."

"Yes, eventually." the Doctor agreed. "But you don't have to be a professional psychotherapist to be a supportive friend. And she also has her sister to talk to."

"Yes, yet another person who needs years of therapy." He cleared his throat. "Maybe River could have a go at talking to her. Maybe she'd open up to an older woman with some life experience."

The Doctor made a disgusted sound. "Maybe _not_ such a good idea. You did hear me mention that she's a _lunatic_ , didn't you?"

Turlough raised his eyebrows. "And you failed to elaborate on that..."

The Doctor rolled his eyes, not exactly eager to describe what had taken place in the library. "She... she was behaving inappropriately." he summarized.

Turlough's eyes widened and he stepped a bit closer, intrigued. "Well now...what did she _do_?" His expression was rapt.

The Doctor looked around the room to make sure they were alone and leaned in. "She asked me to take her back and show her to the shower." he whispered.

Turlough blinked. "Seriously?" His expression became one of annoyed boredom. "That's all?"

"Well it was the _way_ she said it." the Doctor insisted. "You should have _seen_ the way she took her coat off. It was practically indecent." Hearing himself say it out loud, he realized his explanation sounded a bit feeble.

Turlough began to laugh. "Her _coat_? Doctor... isn't it possible you're reading a bit too much into things?"

The Doctor thought back to the library. The memory of River stroking his arm and pressing herself against his side made him slightly dizzy.

"Not a chance." he said firmly. "She... _touched_ me."

Turlough narrowed his eyes. "Dare I ask where?"

The Doctor looked around the console room again and leaned in again. "My side, my shoulder, my arm and my leg."

Turlough sighed. "Now Doctor," he began as if addressing a very small child. "Sometimes in life, it's _normal_ to come into occasional physical contact with another person. When that happens-"

The Doctor interrupted his companion with a sound of exasperation. "Oh, for the love of Rassilon. The woman _told me_ she wanted to take a shower with me!" he exploded.

Turlough looked slightly skeptical. "Really? With _you_?" He seemed to be studying the Time Lord, looking him up and down. The Doctor began to feel self-conscious under his scrutiny. "She actually _said_ that?" Turlough puzzled.

"Yes with _me_. Why shouldn't she want to take a shower with me?" The Doctor asked, feeling inexplicably offended.

Turlough shrugged. "I'm just surprised is all. She's quite a beautiful woman you know."

The Doctor tilted his head to one side and attempted to look surprised by this news. " _Is_ she? I hadn't really noticed..."

Turlough cracked up laughing. "Of course you haven't. So... tell me Doctor. How exactly did you handle her _inappropriate_ behavior?"

The Doctor chewed on his lip for a moment then stared down at his feet. "At first I tried to read a book about Molecular Mechanics in an attempt to discourage her... _then_ I suggested she might have a personality disorder." Turlough snorted laughter and the Doctor cleared his throat. "At any rate... I think I should probably keep my distance."

Turlough appeared to be trying to maintain a straight face. "I think you're right. No telling when she might take her _coat_ off in front of you again."

"I'm telling you! It was the _way_ she did it." The Doctor put his hand to his head and sighed. "It sounds absurd, I know. It's fairly clear she was _trying_ to get a reaction out of me. A power play, pure and simple. I don't know why the devil she has me so wound up."

Turlough patted the Doctor on the back and gave him an empathetic look. "If _I'm_ the one who has to explain these things to you, you _are_ in big trouble."

* * *

 _The Corridors, The TARDIS, an hour later_

Cadence had indeed laid down for a nap so Haven decided to join her. Only she found that sleep wasn't an option. She just tossed and turned, unpleasant memories invading her brain.

Ultimately she was afraid she'd disturb her sister, so she'd decided to take the time to explore the endless corridors. In her current state of mind, she didn't much care if she got lost.

She walked for what seemed like hours. As she went, she paid no attention to which direction she was going, which way the corridors seemed to be winding. She thought back to the information that Turlough has shared with her and she sighed.

It was true, she'd suspected for some time that the Coordinators had possibly been drugging them. She'd experienced a series of fuzzy memories and sequences of events whose edges didn't _quite_ fit together. And then the other day when she'd been telling Turlough about passengers being taken away, she'd realized that she knew this to be a fact, yet she couldn't actually _remember_ any specific instances of it happening.

Haven stopped her aimless wandering for a moment and leaned against the stark, white wall. It wasn't bad enough that those bastards had used her body any way they'd wanted, but now she knew they'd fucked with her mind as well. Tears of anger began to flow. It wasn't often that Haven Barber felt sorry for herself, but everything seemed to be pressing down on her, all at once..

A door to her right that she hadn't even noticed suddenly opened and River popped her head out. Her hair was wet like she'd just finished showering. "Hi there sweetie." she greeted cheerfully.

Haven began wiping at her eyes and trying to act natural. "Hello River. I seem to have gotten a bit lost..."

River studied her without speaking for a moment. "It seems to me the TARDIS brought you directly to the right place." she beckoned with a nod of her head. "Come in here. Let's have a drink."

Haven hesitated for only a moment before shrugging and following River into a bedroom she'd not seen before.

Haven blinked as she walked in, stunned by the elaborate decoration and luxurious bedding. The large bed was covered with some smooth, satiny material. The comforter was silver with a black rose and thorn pattern. There were candles lit on every surface and a roaring fire in a fireplace. It was a bit surreal. Haven had never seen a room like it outside of pictures.

"Whoa." she breathed, definitely impressed. "Whose room is _this_?" she wondered.

River shrugged and grinned. "Mine of course." She perched on a cushioned stool wearing a satiny robe that matched the rest of the bedroom. "Have a seat. Would you like some champagne?" She picked up her own glass from a marble table and took a sip.

The young brunette blinked, taken aback. "Wait a minute... How is this _your_ bedroom? The Doctor doesn't even know you." She crossed her arms, awaiting further explanation.

River chuckled. "Time travel makes one's life a bit... non linear I'm afraid. _I_ know the Doctor quite well." She raised an eyebrow and smirked suggestively. "And I _do_ mean, _quite_ well. Only, I know him from the future." She nodded her head in the direction of the door. "Blondie in there hasn't exactly met me before today."

Haven sunk slowly into a cushy red chair. "So... you're saying, in his future- which is _your_ past- the Doctor and you... have some kind of relationship?"

River nodded and poured a second glass of champagne before placing the bottle back into a silver ice bucket. "Yes, that's right." She passed the champagne glass to Haven who took it uncertainly.

"So what's that like?" Haven asked, genuinely curious. "A relationship with the _Doctor_?" She honestly couldn't picture the Doctor being that type.

River sighed and looked into her own glass. "The Doctor and I have a bit of a bumpy history." she explained, her tone changing slightly. "Quite a lot of bad things happened early on." She shrugged. "Most of it, the Doctor seemed to be expecting- as if it were all pre-scripted."

Haven took an experimental sip of the golden liquid she'd been handed. She was surprised to find it tasted quite good, if a little potent. "What do you mean... _pre-scripted_?" she wondered. She took another drink.

"When I was young, the Doctor was much older and knew everything about me. And now as I get older, he knows me less and less each time we meet." River shrugged. "And here I am meeting a version of the Doctor who doesn't know me at all." She narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "It makes for a nice change to be something unexpected in his life for once." She smiled for real this time and took a drink of her champagne.

Haven grinned, enjoying the warmth spreading throughout her body. She took another sip. "So, even in the past, _before_ he knew you, you still have a bedroom in the TARDIS?" she asked, trying to understand.

River looked all around the room appreciatively. "The TARDIS doesn't experience time the way most do. She doesn't have a future- or a past. She sort of exists everywhere and everywhen all at once. "

Haven nodded and swore she felt the TARDIS hum in response. "It must be nice to always have a home to go to." she murmured.

River regarded her with kind eyes. She leaned forward on the stool and exhaled heavily. "The thing about the past... is that it's just a story that lives inside of your mind. All that's happened to you." River shook her head, her eyes far away. "It's a very passive experience, remembering the past. You can't _affect_ it _._ You can't _change_ it. It's just a story that can make you angry or sad or joyful."

Haven nodded, feeling the tears burning her eyes once more. "In my case, I'd say mostly angry. Especially in retrospect." She glanced down at her glass and chewed at her lip.

River was quiet for a moment. "What do you think you would most like to change about your past, if you could?" she asked finally.

Haven shrugged. "I wish I could have had my mother with me. Even all the horrible stuff that came after...the way we were treated." she shook her head. "I think if my mum had been there, it wouldn't have been so bad." She had started to cry again but this time she didn't much care. She drank the last of her champagne and fidgeted with the glass.

River wiped a tear away from her own eye and pressed her lips together. "You know, my mum was taken from me right after I was born as well."

Haven raised her eyebrows, surprised by this revelation. "Did she die?" she asked softly.

River grinned sadly. "Her _death_ is actually a bit more difficult to explain. But no, she didn't die when I was young. I was kidnapped by this group of people... sort of a fanatical religious sect. They brainwashed me from a young age..."

Haven just stared in shock. _Brainwashed?_ She was speechless.

River continued. "They had a role in mind for me just as these Coordinators seemed to have in mind for you and your whole generation. They had something quite specific that I was meant to do." She smirked. "And do you know what I did?" she asked.

"What?" Haven gasped.

"Something else instead." she revealed, a look of rebellion in her green eyes. "You see Haven, when I look back at my story, I _am_ still angry at what I missed out on. I'm still hurt that my innocence was stolen from me. And I _still_ feel helpless that nothing can be done to _undo_ all the damage."

River's experience was painfully relatable. Haven stared down at the floor, tears blurring her eyes.

"But the thing about my story _and_ your story, is that those mad, dreadful things that happened were only the beginning." River set her glass down and stood, walking over to a framed picture Haven hadn't noticed before on the fireplace mantle. It was a picture of River with some silly looking man wearing a bow tie. She touched the glass of the frame, smiling fondly. "You have control from here on out. You get to write the rest of your story and those _bastards_ that tried to ruin your life don't get a say anymore."

Haven blinked, the words sparking something inside her. It was true what River said. She now had a choice. She _was_ in control of her own life now. It was a powerful realization, very nearly overwhelming. She sucked in a shaky breath. "How do you move on?" she whispered. "How do you learn to be _normal_ after something like this?"

River turned to face her, threw her head back and laughed. "I've _no_ idea." she admitted.

Haven couldn't help but crack up laughing at her candor. She held her glass out to River since she was finished with it. Instead of taking it, River poured her some more of the bubbly liquid. Then she topped off her own glass before taking a seat once more on the stool.

River took a sip and raised an eyebrow. "Well who wants to be _normal_ anyway?" she asked. She tucked a curly strand of wet hair behind one ear and sighed dramatically. "Sounds ever so boring."


	12. Chapter 12

_The TARDIS, Giannes, 2080 A.D._

By the time River got halfway down the corridor, she was so angry she could barely see straight. She'd just come from her bedroom after helping an exhausted and somewhat inebriated Haven to bed. The poor girl had been starting to drift off in the red chair and River didn't see the point in making her walk back to her own room.

By the time River had gotten into her pajamas, she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep. Adrenaline had counteracted the effects of the alcohol she'd ingested. She'd headed out to the corridor, leaving Haven to sleep off the champagne.

The stories Haven had told her... how those Coordinators had taken advantage of the female passengers from a young age. Haven had been only thirteen the first time she'd been used by one of those animals. She had been raised in a culture where the women were entitled to neither privacy or agency over their own bodies. And River could see that Haven was only now beginning to understand how terribly she and her sister had been violated all that time.

It wasn't bad enough that the people in charge of the project had lied to obtain their human cargo. It wasn't bad enough that they had murdered an entire generation of people, leaving over a thousand orphaned. The opportunistic bastards had also seen fit to take advantage of the readily available population of vulnerable young women who had no recourse. Until now, that is.

When River reached the door of the console room, she closed her eyes and took a breath. It wouldn't do to lose control. Above all, the Doctor had taught her to be rational in the face of evil. No matter how despicable the opponent, no matter how infuriating the injustice, you'd get nowhere if you couldn't remain level-headed. Not that she was perfectly calm and rational at the moment. It would take more than a deep breath to find some semblance of inner peace after what she had just learned. For now she'd have to settle for barely concealed rage.

She entered the console room. The Doctor and Turlough were engrossed in conversation, clearly referencing whatever information was pulled up on the TARDIS computer.

"Gentlemen." she greeted.

They jumped as if they'd been caught at something nefarious.

"River." the Doctor acknowledged in an icy tone before quickly switching off the monitor.

"Hello." Turlough's greeting was at least slightly more friendly.

"I've just come from talking to Haven." she informed them, her nostrils flaring. She leaned against the console, taking note of how the Doctor immediately put distance between her and himself. If she wasn't so pissed off, she'd have been amused.

Turlough scratched his head and met her eyes. "How is she?" he asked, clearly concerned.

River studied him curiously before answering. "I should think thoroughly damaged thanks to the fine crew of _Aquarius Epta._ " She exhaled and shook her head. "Have either of you any idea what exactly these women have been through?" Turlough looked away and the Doctor sighed and rubbed a hand down his face.

"I take it she shared some of the... _details_ with you." the Doctor ventured, looking decidedly uncomfortable. Whether his discomfort was due to having to speak to River or merely the subject matter at hand she couldn't tell.

She nodded, her jaw clenched. "That's right. She told me that every female passenger from her generation was available for the sexual gratification of any Coordinator at any time. And they didn't let an inconvenient notion like _consent_ stand in the way. Or age for that matter." She took a deep breath. "Haven was only _thirteen years old_..." She trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

At this news, Turlough turned away, shaking his head.

The Doctor closed his eyes, and uttered something that sounded like an expletive under his breath.

River continued. "Of course since it's all they've ever known, they never thought to even question any of it until they heard their mother's chronicle." She crossed her arms and looked at the Doctor who was still visibly shaken. She stepped closer to him and told him very quietly. "Doctor, I don't know what your plans are to address this situation. All I know is that I _am_ involved and I will do everything in my power to make certain that those sons of bitches answer for what they've done." Her voice was calm but her tone was resolute, her eyes blazing.

Before the Doctor could reply, Turlough spun back around. "Of course, she could only tell you what she could _remember._ " he interjected harshly. Then he left the room without another word.

The Doctor watched after him, sympathy clear on his face

River made a clucking sound with her tongue. "That one has it bad, doesn't he?"

The Doctor stuffed his hands into his pockets and pressed his lips together. "So it would seem." he said at length.

"What did he mean by that?" she asked him after a moment.

"By what?" the Doctor asked, his handsome face overly innocent.

River rolled her eyes ceilingward. "That she can only tell me what she can remember. What's that about?"

The Doctor was on the verge of answering when River interrupted. "And _don't_ tell me you don't know, because it's clear that you _do_." She tilted her head and regarded him critically.

He sighed and stared into the now dark computer monitor. After a time he said, "It seems as though your interest in this situation stems from the fact that you genuinely _care_ about these women." He looked back at her, as if waiting for her to confirm this assertion.

She rolled her eyes and mumbled, "Leave it to you to reduce my motives to something so basic as mere sentimentality." He raised his eyebrows and she held up her hands as if surrendering. " _Fine_. Yes. I do care about Haven and Cadence. Are you happy? I'm not some slick baddie looking to get what I can out of the situation." She shrugged, feeling uncomfortable. "I just want to help." she added softly.

The Doctor watched her, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Interesting." he remarked.

She narrowed her eyes at him. _"What_ is so interesting?" she demanded. If there was one thing that drove her absolutely mad, it was when the Doctor (even _her_ Doctor) examined her as if she were a particularly fascinating specimen. Just as he was doing now.

The Doctor flipped the monitor back on and pulled up the directory of files. "You." he replied, his back to her. "It appears I've struck a nerve."

* * *

In his peripheral vision, the Doctor noticed River shifting her weight from one foot to another and inspecting the satiny sleeve of her pajama top. "I don't know what you're talking about." she responded, trying her best to sound bored.

He chuckled and tapped a few keys on the keyboard. "Of course you don't." he answered pleasantly. He hated to admit it to himself but he rather liked having the upper hand when dealing with River. She had let her facade slip, if only for a moment, and he'd observed something surprising- that she was indeed a compassionate person but she perceived it as a weakness. So, she hid it.

"Here." he motioned her over, gesturing to the screen. "Turlough was looking through these medical records when he discovered something suspicious about the pharmaceutical prescriptions."

River walked over, definitely still annoyed. "What about them?" she asked, squinting at the screen.

"There were three particular drugs he noticed." the Doctor pulled up a file of a random female passenger. "Vergessen, which was given _as needed_ to all the passengers. We confirmed that Vergessen is a memory suppressant."

He glanced at River to gauge her reaction. She gave a harsh little laugh. "Of course." Her green eyes flashed dangerously. "How very _thorough_ of them."

He cleared his throat and continued. "Pyrursis, given only to the male passengers, but on a daily basis." He cut his eyes to her once more before saying, "Pyrursis is given as a form of chemical castration. It explains why none of the male passengers seemed to have any interest in the females."

River merely nodded at this, her face grim. Like nothing could surprise her anymore.

At last, the Doctor pulled up a random crew member's file. "And finally, one called Ambrosan, dispensed only to the crew." He sighed and tugged at his ear. "Try as we might, we couldn't find anything on this particular drug."

He started to close the crew member's file when River stopped him. "Wait just a moment. Can we enlarge this ID photograph?" She moved in closer and peered at the photograph at the top of the medical record.

"What is it?" the Doctor wondered, curious.

" _Just_ like her." River whispered, then gasped. "And with the same last name?" Her voice was incredulous. "Could it be...?"

"River... what have you found?" The Doctor narrowed his eyes, troubled by her reaction.

She hip-bumped him out of the way and began to scan the directory of files for herself.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, indignant.

"This woman..." she mumbled as she deftly navigated the computer. "I want to find out what her function is on this project."

The Doctor frowned. "Well _do_ make yourself at home." he muttered. She certainly had her nerve.

After a moment of searching, River found what she'd been looking for- something of a dossier on the crew member in question. The Doctor watched what she was doing over her shoulder. He couldn't help but be impressed by how easily she'd found her way through the mess of files from the mainframe. Clearly she was used to a similar interface.

"She's a flight officer." River said. "So she's on the bridge." She chewed at her lip and shook her head. "I can't believe this. Is this really just a coincidence?"

"River," the Doctor interrupted her mutterings, his arms crossed, his tone brooking no argument. "I think it's time you filled me in on this mystery woman."

River scrolled back to the cover page of the dossier. A picture of a dark attractive woman stared back. "Her name is Anaïs Mercer." she closed her eyes and sighed. "This is going to sound mad but I swear to you, she is _identical_ to a woman by the name of Eirenne Mercer." Her voice grew haunted. "Eirenne was killed in the year 3019 by those androids on this very planet. She was a member of my crew."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows, unsure what to make of this new information. "So... you presume she's a descendant?"

River shrugged. "I truly have no idea. But it's... strange, isn't it?"

He nodded, unwilling to admit that he was slightly unsettled and that the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end ever so slightly.

He cleared his throat. "Speaking of the androids..." he began, "What can you tell me that you haven't already."

River's expression became shrewd, calculating. She smiled. "I can tell you that you need my help in dealing with them."

The Doctor very nearly cracked a smile in response. Almost. "That remains to be seen." he countered.

River tucked a wild curl behind one ear and continued. "Whatever the origin of those androids, whoever their people, I can assure you one thing." She looked him square in the eye, her expression intense. "They couldn't come close to the magnitude of evil these humans have shown."

The Doctor nodded, completely in agreement. "Quite."

* * *

 _Five Hours Later_

Haven awoke with a dreadful headache and a vague memory of pouring her heart out to River. She sat up and groaned. It was official. She fucking hated drinking.

She looked around her, realizing she'd fallen asleep in River's bed. River was nowhere in sight and she had no idea how much time had passed. That was the funny thing about the TARDIS. It wasn't just that it traveled in time, time seemed to pass in a surreal fashion for those on board. Night and day were practically interchangeable.

She suddenly remembered that _Aquarius Epta_ was due to land soon and the realization catapulted her out of the bed. She wondered if it already had...

An abrupt knock on the door startled her. She stared at the door, puzzled for just a moment before remembering this little custom. This courtesy of announcing your presence before bursting in on someone. She quite liked it.

She smoothed her hair down, straightened her wrinkled clothes and then pulled the door open.

She was pleased to see Turlough standing there. He looked dreadfully uncomfortable for some reason. She blinked, confused.

"Is everything alright?" she wondered.

He sighed and held out his closed hand, as if to place something in hers. "River wanted me to bring you this." he explained.

She held out her own hand, palm up and he placed a tablet in it. She frowned. "And what is this?" she asked.

He cleared his throat. "It's for your hangover." he informed her. "Should help with the headache. You should drink plenty of water as well." He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and clasped his hands behind his back awkwardly.

Haven nodded. "Okay, well... tell River thanks for me." But she didn't turn to go. She waited to see if there was anything else. Anything aside from the errand he'd been sent on.

Turlough didn't leave either. They stood like that in the doorway to River's bedroom for what seemed like ages. TARDIS time. It was something quite distinct indeed.

Finally he spoke. "I know this is an absolutely useless question just as I probably already know the answer but..." his blue eyes studied her carefully, as if looking for something. "...are you alright?"

He was worried about her. In fact, he'd been worried about her ever since she'd left the console room earlier. She could see it written all over his face. And Haven found his consideration a remedy far more potent than any headache tablet. Than any type of drug at all really.

With no forethought behind it, she reached out and placed the hand not holding the medicine against the side of his face. It was the single most intimate act she'd ever initiated with a man. And it felt nice. She smiled a small smile and looked straight into his eyes. "Just a little better now." she murmured.

Her words and her touch seemed to allay his nerves and he smiled back. "I'm glad of that." He looked as if he might reach out to her, or even move a bit closer into her personal space, but he didn't. She dropped her hand and the moment passed.

She cleared her throat and looked down at the yellow pill in her hand. "Has the ship landed yet?" she wondered.

"It hasn't. The TARDIS sensors have detected that it's nearing this planet's orbit though." He put his hands in the pockets of his coat and raised his eyebrows. "The pilot will have to take care when he lands. A sort of blizzard is blowing through."

Haven's eyes widened a bit. "A blizzard?" she repeated. "You mean it's snowing. Actual snow, outside, right now?"

Turlough nodded, amused. "Yes it is." he studied her for a second, then leaned in conspiratorially. "Would you like to go see it?"

Haven shrieked so loudly that Turlough actually stumbled backward into the opposite wall. Then before he'd recovered his balance, she grabbed him by the hand and tugged him down the corridor, dropping the tablet she'd been holding in her haste. "Let's get Cadence!" she shouted, thrilled at the prospect of seeing in real life what she'd only seen in pictures and nature documentaries. Turlough allowed himself to be carried along by her enthusiasm, laughing quietly all the way down the corridor.

Cadence was just leaving her bedroom, her hair mussed from sleep. She blinked in confusion when hurricane Haven moved in, sweeping her along into the console room.

"There's snow!" Haven explained to her older sister, when they'd finally come to a halt beside the console. "It's snowing outside, right now!"

Cadence gasped. "Is it?" She looked to Turlough as if Haven was prone to making such things up.

He chuckled. "Indeed."

"Turlough, what's all this fuss about?" The Doctor wondered, looking up from something he was working on at a small workbench he'd pulled out from the console. He was wearing a pair of spectacles Haven hadn't seen before. There was no River in sight.

Turlough cleared his throat. "They want to see the snow." he shrugged.

The Doctor sighed, glancing toward the door, then back to the three of them. "I suppose that would be alright. Just stay right near the TARDIS and only for a moment." He pointed at them sternly. "And nobody wander off." he admonished before turning back to tinkering with whatever he had been tinkering.

"Alright _dad_." Cadence murmured as they put on their coats and eye protection. Turlough and Haven cracked up laughing.

"I _heard_ that." the Doctor singsonged as they exited the TARDIS.

The moment Turlough turned on his torch to cut through the darkness of the eternal night, they entered a sort of white chaos. The landscape was blanketed with snow and more of it was falling down from the sky and blowing in sideways and drifting along the snowy ground like smoke. The three of them stepped further out into the blizzard, entranced by the sights and the sounds. The wind was piercing and shrill as it blew across Giannes, as if the planet itself were protesting the arrival of more humans. It was horrible, yet it was stunningly beautiful.

"This is amazing!" Cadence shouted, turning on her own torch. Haven was speechless. She walked even further out, toward a ledge. They were on a hill, looking down across flat land surrounded by more hills and mountains. Directly across the canyon, a short distance away, she could see the mine and compound in the beam of her torch. They were almost unrecognizable now, covered with snow.

She put one hand out, to feel the snow in the air. It was something like putting your hand under running water, only not quite.

Cadence and Turlough joined her, standing on the edge of the hill. They weren't very high up but the decline was steep here. They had found a path leading down at a much less dramatic angle when they'd explored earlier.

They were all quiet, letting the wind monopolize the conversation. It was quite cold but Haven was too caught up in the spectacle of the moment to much care. Her eyes wandered all along the dark horizon and she felt a disquieting feeling take hold of her. Perhaps it was the wrathful wind or the persistent darkness, but she was becoming more and more keenly aware that they were the uninvited. That their presence here was forbidden.

Her voice was strange in her own ears when she finally spoke. "It's like... no person was ever meant to see any of this. We're intruders here." She blinked, troubled by her thoughts.

Cadence reached out and took hold of her hand. "I feel that too Hotaru." she whispered.

Just then, above the inhuman howl of the wind, Turlough's voice bellowed, " _Get down!_ " and she felt herself being hurled to the snowy ground, the air knocked from her lungs. In that very same moment, the familiar sound of an energy weapon discharging seemed to resonate all around them. There was a bright flash and Turlough was scrambling to his knees in the snow, pulling her up with him.

"Back to the TARDIS. Right _now._ " he instructed, his voice frenzied. Haven blinked in confusion, still not quite comprehending what was happening. He pulled her to her feet and began to hurry back toward the ship which was much further away then she'd realized.

Everything was happening in choppy fragments. She allowed herself to be pulled along and when she tried to look back, Turlough yanked her by the arm even harder.

" _Run!_ " he commanded as another flash of energy shot right past them, missing them both by inches.

Finally realization dawned. They were being pursued by an android. "What about Cadence?" she shouted in panic as they reached the door of the TARDIS. She turned to look back into the darkness and saw only her flashlight, still turned on, lying in the snow near the cliff's edge where Turlough had knocked it from her hand.

Now he was dragging her through the door of the TARDIS. "Stop it!" she screamed, struggling against him. "What are you doing? We need to go back for Cadence!"

Turlough managed to pull her all the way into the TARDIS and close the door behind them. She wound up on the floor where he'd flung her in his haste. From her vantage point, she watched as he turned and leaned his back against the door and slowly slid down to the floor beside her.

The Doctor had ran over to see what was happening but it was like he was talking to them from underwater, all far away and garbled. " _What's the matter? What's happened?"_

She ignored him and kept her eye on Turlough. And she knew from his face. From how pale he'd become, from the look of horror in his eyes. She knew but she didn't want to hear it spoken out loud. Didn't want it to be true.

Cadence was gone.


	13. Chapter 13

_The Doctor's Laboratory, TARDIS_

River squinted at the screen of the Elemental Analyzer Unit, awaiting results. She'd told the Doctor she had some core samples she'd collected from 3019 that she wished to analyze and he'd shown her to the lab with no further questioning. Although, he _had_ seemed rather entertained when he found out she was an archaeologist. She'd let it go this time. After all, she _was_ hiding a rather important piece of the puzzle from him.

As soon as he'd left, she'd pulled the chunk of blue crystal from her side pack. She'd heard Turlough call this mineral Giannesite. _Giannesite._ River snorted derisively as she prepared a sample for the machine. She supposed some unimaginative woman had come up with the uninspired name. Had it been an unimaginative man, after all, he'd have named it after _himself_ rather than the planet.

As the machine evaluated the components of the crystal, her mind kept going back to another woman... that Anaïs Mercer. Frankly, just as soon as she could, River intended to find Miz Mercer and have a word. Something was eating at River about all this, and it wasn't just the possibility of the woman being related to Eirenne. There was something here they were all missing...

The EAU chimed, alerting her that it was ready with preliminary results. She sent the results to the printer, and stood and stretched. Clearly this Doctor hadn't upgraded his peripheral hardware any time recently. While the EAU was light years ahead of any current technology, the printer was a relic. It performed its task painfully slowly.

As the data printed, River found she was experiencing a touch of remorse at keeping things from the Doctor after he'd shown her so much of what they'd found in the mainframe's database. She supposed she'd look at the results, and depending on what she found, she'd go ahead and share them with him.

She smirked, thinking about him. This incarnation was a smug, self righteous bastard- much more prim and proper than the Doctor she was used to. He seemed positively terrified of anything relating to carnal knowledge. She chuckled, remembering his reaction to her suggestive behavior earlier. It was a shame actually. He really _was_ quite a looker.

The printer had finally finished and she pulled the pile of papers from the tray. She leaned against the counter and looked over the top page which provided a summary of readings and measurements. River was certainly no mineralogist but she did have a decent amount of experience.

Her eyes scanned the page, halting at one measurement from the XRD analysis. "Hmm. That can't be right." she mumbled, not certain she was reading it correctly. She stood puzzling for a moment before sighing. She really would have to ask the Doctor's opinion on this because what she was concluding didn't make any sense.

The door to the laboratory swung open abruptly, causing River to startle guiltily and drop the sheaf of papers onto the floor. The Doctor entered, a peculiar look on his face. She made a sound of exasperation as she bent to pick up the papers. She supposed it served her right for being sneaky.

"River..." he began.

"Doctor, there's something I need to tell you." she interrupted, still bent over, collecting all the papers and attempting to assemble them in order.

"No." he replied harshly. "There's something I need to tell _you_."

His tone surprised her and she finally stood up straight and really looked at him. What she saw stopped her in her tracks.

His complexion was ashen, his expression stricken. Oh, how could this day get _any_ worse?

"Doctor... what's wrong?" She set the results down on the counter and instinctively went to him, not caring for the moment how little he knew her. She placed her hands gently on his upper arms in a bracing fashion and studied him, concerned. "Tell me what's happened." she insisted, her voice anxious.

"It's Cadence." he told her in a hollow voice. "She's gone...shot by one of the androids." He blinked, looking as if he still couldn't quite believe it.

River gasped, her hearts sinking. "But... what the _hell_ was she doing outside?" she insisted, dropped her hands from his arms, incredulous.

The Doctor shook his head. "They wanted to see the snow..." he provided flatly, then turned away, his hand to his head. "I can't believe I just let them walk out like that. It's all my fault..." His voice sounded devastated. He began to pace the laboratory, palpably buzzing with frenetic energy.

River lowered herself into the stool behind her, one hand covering her mouth. She couldn't believe it either. But he was wrong. It was _her_ fault. _She_ was the one who's made a promise to their mother. And when Cadence had needed her most, she hadn't been around. The feeling of guilt, of being responsible took the wind out of her and if it weren't for what bad shape the Doctor was in, she might've completely fallen apart. But she didn't have that luxury. Somebody needed to be strong right now. She couldn't even imagine the state Haven was in.

River exhaled loudly and closed her eyes. _Haven._ This day really was turning out to be a nightmare. She opened her eyes again and cleared her throat, striving to keep it together. "Where's her sister?"

The Doctor sounded lost. "She's, er... with Turlough. They ran back into the TARDIS just in time... they fell to the console room floor." he shook his head and stopped pacing for a moment. He blinked. "I don't think either of them has gotten up just yet.

His words were jarring. _That poor woman._ After all she'd already been through. And Cadence had been the one by her side through all of it, her last surviving family member. River felt tears stinging her eyes.

She nodded. "I'm going to check on her." she said softly, standing again. "Why don't you just sit down and take a few moments to collect yourself?" she suggested. Then she turned and left the lab.

When she reached the console room, she saw that the Doctor was right. They _hadn't_ gotten up just yet. She found Turlough leaned back against the closed door that led outside, his eyes trained on Haven. Haven wasn't quite sitting up. She was sort of leaned forward on her hands and knees, as if she'd started to rise, then changed her mind. She stared unseeingly at the floor. They were still wearing their winter coats, snow from their boots and clothes melting into puddles around them.

River knelt down beside both of them, looking from one face to the other for a sign of recognition. She cleared her throat. "Are either of you hurt?" she asked, noticing some blood coming from Haven's mouth

Turlough didn't take his eyes off of Haven, but he did reply in a shaky voice. "I'm not... but I would imagine Haven is a bit banged up." He furrowed his brow. "I threw her all over the place trying to get her to safety."

Haven didn't move, didn't make a sound. It was obvious she was having some sort of post traumatic stress reaction and that Turlough was afraid to touch her or move her. So here he sat, watching over her.

River looked at him pointedly. "Why don't you help me get her to the sick bay?" she suggested.

Turlough finally moved his eyes to her. "Alright." he replied, sounding grateful for some direction. He got to his feet and leaned down to grasp Haven under one arm. River grabbed her other arm.

Haven went along without resisting, though her movements were stiff and unnatural, her face slack and lifeless.

They half carried her to the treatment room. They settled her on a cot, on which she immediately curled up and laid motionless, her eyes still open, staring into space.

Turlough looked terribly worried and was clutching Haven's hand in his own protectively. "Where is the Doctor? Shouldn't he be here?" he insisted.

River sighed. "He'll be here soon." she assured him with a certainty she wasn't feeling. "He just needs a little time."

* * *

The Doctor was, in fact, quite useless at the moment. He had taken River's advice and sat in one of the lab stools at the counter, attempting to collect himself.

Cadence Barber. Yet another person who had placed their trust in him who he'd been unable to save in the end. It never got any easier, and he never felt any less responsible. He felt a surge of pain in his chest as Adric's face flashed in his head. And then he heard Turlough's voice, an echo from just a few days before when they'd first met the Barber sisters.

"Imagine. All these years. With nobody at all to watch out for them or protect them."

Turlough, for once, had insisted they get involved. He had been angry and determined that they should do something about it. And what had the Doctor told him?

" _We_ are going to watch out for those women and _we_ will protect them. _"_

The Doctor shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had failed. He had failed Cadence and he had failed Haven. As if Haven hadn't already been hurt enough in her life. He wasn't entirely sure she'd ever be able to get over the loss of her sister. Haven hadn't died, and yet she was still another casualty.

As was often the case, a literary quote came to mind, unbidden. In _To Kill a Mockingbird,_ Atticus Finch had said that there were "other ways of making people into ghosts". That seemed unsettlingly fitting.

The Doctor closed his eyes and remembered the two women bumping into them for the first time, outside the supply room. Cadence's blue eyes had stared straight through him and she'd said a single word. _Help._

He thought about how brave she'd been when they'd gone out to the Operations Deck to create a distraction so that Turlough and Haven could hack the mainframe. How, as Abigail the housekeeper, she'd insulted the Guardians' mothers in Lithuanian. And he thought about how he couldn't even offer her comfort by touching her hand because she'd been so mistreated all her life, a man's touch _was_ no comfort. And now it could never be any different.

The Doctor opened his eyes and stared unseeingly at the counter. He knew he needed to get up, shake this off and go be a leader for the sake of his friends. That he was being selfish and weak.

He was vaguely aware that River's bag was sitting on the counter in front of him. And that beside _it_ was some blue crystal, broken into several pieces.

 _Familiar blue crystal._

His eyes widened and he jumped up from the stool. Giannesite. River had this the _whole time_ and hadn't bothered to tell him? He walked around the counter and examined the fractured mineral. This must have been what she was actually testing in here.

He looked around and spotted the stack of papers she'd been fussing with when he'd walked in to tell her the news. The Doctor picked them up and studied them. Results from the Elemental Analyzer.

As he looked over the figures, he noticed something odd. He reread the results from the X-ray Diffraction test. _Was that right?_ His eyes narrowed. "Interesting." he muttered. He put that page to the bottom of the stack in his hands and looked over the next. And then on to the next. By the time he'd finished reading all the results, he felt adrenaline coursing through his system. He set the papers down and walked over to pocket a fragment of the Giannesite. Then he headed purposefully out of the laboratory.

He knew he couldn't just tell everyone what he'd found because he didn't have a complete picture yet. He didn't actually know _everything_. But what he _did_ know was that they'd been operating under some false assumptions all this time. That the scientists at Carr Enterprises had gotten things very wrong.

And that if he was right, if his own assumptions were correct, there may still be some hope for Cadence.

Perhaps there was some way to plant that seed of hope in Haven.

* * *

 _Turlough managed to pull her all the way into the TARDIS and close the door behind them. She wound up on the floor where he'd flung her in his haste. From her vantage point, she watched as he turned and leaned his back against the door and slowly slid down to the floor beside her._

 _The Doctor had ran over to see what was happening but it was like he was talking to them from underwater, all far away and garbled. "What's the matter? What's happened?"_

 _She ignored him and kept her eye on Turlough. And she knew from his face. From how pale he'd become, from the look of horror in his eyes. She knew but she didn't want to hear it spoken out loud. Didn't want it to be true._

 _Cadence was gone._

 _Haven seemed to be having great difficulty keeping up with what was happening in real time. For her, things were still coming in choppy fragments. Her heart was pounding in her throat and she tasted blood and she became convinced that her heart was somehow in her mouth and that if she tried to speak, it might stop beating._

 _The Doctor continued to question them, finally kneeling directly in front of Turlough and shaking him. "What's happened!?" he was nearly shouting. "Where the hell is Cadence?"_

 _Turlough was still breathless when he finally answered. "She's dead!" he informed the Doctor, his voice breaking. "The android just came up out of nowhere. It shot her."_

" _Are you absolutely sure?" the Doctor demanded, sounding uncharacteristically aggressive. "You're sure that she didn't get away? Should I be out there looking for her?"_

 _Turlough shook his head and a tear rolled down his face. "I saw it." he insisted in a harsh whisper. "When I knocked Haven to the ground, I looked up and saw the energy beam hit her. I saw her disappear..."_

 _And that was just about enough for Haven Lane Barber- too much really. Something inside her broke with the finality of those words._

And so Haven had locked her mind down. It was like she was frozen in time while life continued all around her- only she was seeing and hearing it all from very far away. She wasn't part of it, she wasn't directly involved. She was more like a distant observer- peripherally aware, but uninterested in the outcome.

She was aware that River and Turlough had brought her into some sort of sick bay. They placed her on a cot and whispered about her like she was the one who had died but she didn't care enough to be annoyed. She mainly wished they would turn the bright overhead light out. But she realized she was glad for one thing. Turlough never left her side. Even when River left a couple times to fetch a towel or gauze, he clung to her hand, not speaking, not moving. It was a comfort, but at his point, it was a bit like a band aid on a bullet hole.

Haven decided that if she just kept Cadence in her mind and ignored everything else, she could flip reality on its head. Cadence could be alive and the rest of it could be bullshit. She cast her mind back and tried to locate just one happy memory from their childhood.

{She saw them in her mind's eye, staying up late, snuggled together in Cadence's bed. They would make each other laugh until Haven peed herself sometimes. Or until one of the Coordinators came to yell at them.}

She thought back to their tumultuous teen years.

{She remembered the time that Cadence at seventeen had first told her she had a crush on another girl. Haven had been somewhat scandalized but terribly jealous. She'd secretly wished that _she_ was attracted to girls as well since the alternative was so grim.}

Haven came out of her mind far enough to became aware that the Doctor was back, that he seemed to be examining her for injuries. His words drifted to her like someone talking down a long tunnel.

" _She has some bruising here, maybe even a cracked rib or two... And it looks as though she's bitten her tongue. Superficial lacerations fortunately... For now, let's concentrate on keeping her warm and letting her get plenty of rest. She's had quite a shock but she'll come around."_

Haven pulled back from the real world again when the Doctor began to tape up her cracked ribs.

{She cast her mind back to when she and Cadence had been in hiding, on the run from everyone. For three weeks they'd stayed in the shadows, expertly avoiding detection, taking great pleasure in humiliating the Guardians each day. She realized that it may well have been the happiest times they shared with each other. As frightened as they'd been, as horrified as they were from what they'd learned from their mother, they were free and in control and knew the truth. And they had each other.}

The next time Haven noticed her physical surroundings, she realized that she was no longer in the sick bay. Somehow, they'd transported her to a different bedroom, one she didn't recognize. (Or maybe she did but couldn't recall just now.) It was dark at least and more comfortable than the hard cot had been.

As detached as she was, she was still aware that something was missing. Someone. Turlough was no longer holding her hand. And then something moved in the bed beside her. He was here, even in the dark, sleeping beside her, still watching out for her. Despite everything else that sucked in her world, his presence brought her peace and she found she could let her mind rest. She slept.

Her dream was unsurprisingly a nightmare. Running down endless dark tunnels with blue sparkling walls, forever pursued by the horrible robot men. River's voice in the darkness. _It's called a Protector. They're androids created to protect the minerals._

And she saw Cadence standing near the entrance to the tunnel. _If you can't trust them Hotaru, trust me. The Doctor is good. I'm sure he can keep us safe._

Even in her dream, Haven became enraged. _He didn't though, did he? He couldn't keep you safe. You fucking died!_

And then she heard the Doctor's voice all around her. Almost, _felt it,_ like a tickle at the back of her mind.

 _Did she die though, Haven? Did I die when the android shot at me?_

Haven stirred in her sleep, the boundary between her dream and her waking mind wearing thin. _That's just because you have some freaky ass Time Lord superpowers. We can't all be aliens like you._

That tickle in her mind became more pronounced. Like something was reaching deeper into her mind.

 _Time Lords don't have superpowers. We can be harmed and we can die. But only if we are introduced to something harmful. Something like an actual weapon._

Haven scoffed at this. _Of course the android's gun was a weapon! The same kind of weapon that those human fucks wanted to make out of that crystal stuff. Molecular dispersal properties, the documents said. River said those type of weapons break matter down into its particle components. Can turn a person into nothing._

The Doctor's voice became more animated. _The human scientists had never seen elements like the ones they found in the crystal... in the Giannesite. They jumped to conclusions because they didn't understand what they were seeing._

Haven felt confused and a little nauseous. Was this a dream? She felt so strange. She was no longer standing in a tunnel or running from a robot. She was just laying in bed, somewhere between waking and sleeping. _What the hell are you saying?_

The Doctor's voice came to her one last time. _That the crystal doesn't contain anything even remotely capable of destruction._

Haven sat straight up in bed, causing Turlough to leap up in alarm beside her. From the corner of her eye she thought she saw the door to the bedroom closing.

"Are you alright?" Turlough asked, now wide awake.

She looked around the room blinking, feeling... different. No longer detached or far away. "Was someone else just here?" she asked. Her tongue hurt from where she'd bitten it and her voice sounded funny to her own ears.

Turlough let out a breath like he'd been holding it for hours. "You're back." he said, his relief evident.

Haven looked over at him. The poor man had slept in his clothes just to be near her. She smiled sadly. "And you stayed with me." she whispered.

"I-I was just worried about you." He looked embarrassed suddenly, and began edging off of the bed. As if it wasn't right for him to hang around now that she was a functioning human being again.

"Don't go." she pleaded. He stopped mid-retreat and turned. "Stay with me." she told him, not caring how desperate she sounded. "It's easier with you around."

Turlough nodded wordlessly and laid back down against the pillow.

Haven reached over and laced her fingers through his and scooted a little closer. She closed her eyes once more, trying like hell to ignore this new, insidious feeling that had taken hold ever since she'd woken from that surreal, lucid dream. The feeling that had snapped her back to the real world.

Because this feeling was far worse than grief or despair. More dangerous even than feeling nothing at all.

It was hope.


	14. Chapter 14

_**A/N I think I'll be changing the rating of this story to M beginning with the next chapter. Almost did for this one but fortunately, managed to keep things PG. (PG-13 at worst) :) -Ruinous79**_

* * *

 _Library, TARDIS_

River sat on a comfortable gold damask sofa in a dark corner of the library. She was having a drink by herself, taking a moment alone to mourn Cadence. This particular corner of the library, back near the Doctor's impressive collection of first editions, was a favorite place of hers to sit and think. The décor here could be described as Neo-Grec with an ornamental fireplace, some paintings from the period as well as a rare klismos chair. She'd had a drink cart installed in this very spot centuries in the future and was glad to find it waiting with a crystal decanter full of her favorite Martell cognac. She sighed and raised a silent toast to the TARDIS for being the TARDIS.

The truth was, River was feeling beaten. Cadence was gone and now Haven was a catatonic mess. She wanted to deal with those rubbish androids and have a word with their creators on Felix but frankly, that conversation needed to be placed on the back burner. They had the impending arrival of the Aquarius Epta ship to contend with. The ship had been in a holding pattern, apparently waiting out the worst of the snowstorm but that wouldn't last forever. The Doctor said the storm should be over in less than an hour.

Number one on River's to-do list was to visit the bridge of the ship before they landed. She intended to have a chat with Miz Mercer to satisfy her hunch. River's instincts were seldom wrong and she was convinced that she'd get some important answers from the mysterious flight officer.

River intended to simply slip off on her solo mission via her vortex manipulator, knowing that Haven would be safe here on board the TARDIS. She saw no need to discuss her plans with the Doctor. He had the tendency to impose his own ideas of the "right" way to do things on others. River, however, was _not_ the one.

She rooted around in her side pack and pulled out the vortex manipulator. She'd retrieved her pack from the lab once Haven had been settled in to rest. When she collected her crystal samples and the EAU results, it occurred to her that the Doctor may have already taken a peek at things but at this point, she didn't much care. The Giannesite and its elemental results seemed rather unimportant taking into consideration all they were currently facing.

She had just finished strapping the device onto her wrist when the Doctor's voice came from out of nowhere."And so I've found you." She managed to pull down her sleeve to hide the vortex manipulator in one fluid movement and looked up to greet him.

His demeanor startled her even more than his sudden appearance. He pulled the klismos chair up near where she was seated and sat down, arms crossed, looking down his nose at her. He didn't speak. He didn't seem particularly broken up or emotional about the loss of Cadence. She honestly couldn't read his emotions at all. Mainly he was acting very guarded.

She cleared her throat and eyed him curiously. She would never in a million years admit that she found his manner unnerving. "How's Haven?" she asked, keeping her voice casual.

A look of amused surprise crossed his face. "Don't you have anything at all you'd like to tell me?" he wondered, crossing one leg over the other, the ankle resting on the other knee.

The crystal, she guessed. She sighed. "I guess you found my mineral sample in the lab." He didn't answer, just raised his eyebrows and smirked. She went on quickly. "I was just about to have you look at the results for me because I'm no expert and I didn't understand-"

"Well, you're right about that." he snorted

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry?"

"You're certainly no expert." He leaned forward and fixed her with a stern look. "Have you any idea how valuable this information might have been from the outset?"

She blinked, both at his condescending tone and the very fact that he was starting a fight about all this now. What the hell did the particle composition of the blue rock matter? Someone had died, someone she assumed he'd cared about. Why was this his concern?

She took a deep breath, willing herself to stay calm. "Doctor, isn't it possible that your priorities are a little backwards? A girl died less than two hours ago. Her sister is in a bad way. And we have a slave ship chock full of wicked humans set to arrive on world at any time. What the hell does it matter about the crystal?"

The Doctor chuckled and shook his head. "You really don't get it do you?"

Okay, now he was just pissing her off. "Enlighten me then!" she shouted.

For the first time, his face became truly angry. He spoke between clenched teeth, his blue eyes blazing into her. "No, I think it's high time that you enlighten me. You've made yourself entirely too comfortable here. I think we've been more than forthcoming with the information we have. But you've been holding back the entire time."

River stared daggers right back at him, annoyed because she couldn't argue with anything he'd said. She had been holding back. In fact, she still was. And she knew if she just told him about the planet Felix, he'd probably be satisfied... but she also knew she couldn't tell him. Not now. He'd go blundering in and get himself killed. He was far too emotional about Cadence's death, even if he was doing a good job of hiding it at the moment. So she didn't speak at all. One of the most important aspects of staying in control was knowing when not to speak.

His expression turned to one of frosty intrigue. He chuckled again, his eyes narrowed. "Interesting. There _is_ more you know that you're not saying." he stated. "River, what aren't you telling me here?"

Her eyes went ceilingward. "You still think I have some ulterior motive? That I'm not here to help? Well you're wrong." She poured the last bit of sherry down her throat and slammed the glass down on the bar cart.

The Doctor threw his hands up in mock surrender. "I honestly don't care about your motives at this point." he sputtered. "I just want you to tell me what else you know. About the ship, about the planet, about the androids. Just something of use."

"Doctor." she said in a firm tone. "I'm quite sorry that I didn't show you the Giannesite sample sooner. But I assure you, there's nothing else to tell. At least, not about all this." She shrugged. "If it seems I'm withholding information, that's likely because I know things from your personal future that I could never tell you."

He didn't speak for a long time, just studied her, as if trying to decide whether she was being honest.

To her surprise, he suddenly got up from the klismos chair, and sat beside her on the sofa. He sighed and rubbed his hand across his forehead.

"I'm not dealing with any of this very well." he admitted, sounding uncharacteristically contrite. "And perhaps I'm more bothered than I care to admit to be dealing with someone who knows me far better than I know them."

River blinked, not sure where this was going. She figured she'd better humor him. "That's understandable." she reassured him.

And then he scooted closer to her. "River, I have a confession to make and I know my timing leaves something to be desired." He shifted his weight toward her and allowed one of his hands to settle on one of hers.

She stared at him as if he was suddenly wearing clown make up. "I'm sorry... what exactly do you think you're doing right now?" she asked, shaking his hand off of hers and looking him up and down incredulously. He appeared to be making a move on her. River knew from experience that grief did strange things to people. But this guy? No way.

He sighed, sounding both embarrassed and exasperated. "If you'll just hear me out..." he insisted, his tone completely rational. This time his hand went to her shoulder, and he leaned in a bit closer. "I just can't stop thinking about what happened in here the other day." his voice was low and he was staring directly into her eyes.

And suddenly River knew just what he was doing. The sneaky bastard. A dirty little smile appeared on her face. He had no idea who he was dealing with.

She relaxed and tilted her head to one side. "Go on..." she encouraged in a flirtatious tone, her hand falling onto his upper thigh as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

To his credit, her response hardly made him break character at all. The hand on her shoulder simply slipped down and captured the hand she'd placed on his thigh, keeping it from traveling anywhere... else. "What you suggested the other night..." he said softly. "Did you really mean that?" His other hand reached up and gently swept a strand of curly hair behind one of her ears.

River leaned in so they were face to face, their noses nearly touching. "What if I did?" she murmured.

* * *

The Doctor was an authority on rare books. He had traveled to distant galaxies and learned about countless cultures. He was an art aficionado, an expert in transdimensional technology and a master at Venusian aikido. He was even fairly skilled at scrapbooking. He was _not_ , however, particularly knowledgeable about how to seduce a woman. And that was his current predicament.

Fortunately, River didn't take much persuading. She was looking at him like she wished to do unspeakable things to him. Which was precisely why he'd quickly grabbed her hand when she placed it on his thigh. She had just asked him a question. "What if I did?"

His mind froze. How to answer? He cleared his throat and allowed the hand that had been touching her hair to rest against the side of her face. All he needed to do was place his fingertips against her temples for about thirty seconds and he'd be able to get a telepathic read on her secretive little mind. He just needed to stall a bit longer so he could free up his other hand. "I suppose I'm just curious what exactly you had in mind." Even mid-ruse, the Doctor regretted his words instantly. Because he was very much afraid that she was about to answer his question.

She chuckled, running her free hand from his chest slowly down toward his abdomen. The Doctor concentrated on not jumping up and running out of the room. "Where do I begin?" she asked in a teasing manner. Then she leaned in and began to kiss his ear. He froze, his eyes wide. He had not anticipated this. He'd assumed at most he'd have to snog her for a moment.

How had he gotten himself into _this_? The positioning was all wrong and he needed both hands for this to work, one against each side of her head.

Her mouth was now all over his neck, unspeakably hot yet somehow, the contact was causing cold chills to overtake him. He actually had goosebumps. It was an unsettling response.

And it turned out, River was a multitasker. While she was working on his neck, the hand that she'd trailed down to his abdomen continued to trend downward. He may not have had experience in such physical proceedings, but he had an excellent comprehension of physical anatomy. He reached down and grabbed her hand just in time, interlacing his fingers firmly with hers. This was really going to be more difficult than he thought.

She finally pulled away from his neck and looked at him, her green eyes wide and innocent. "Is something the _matter_ Doctor?" she asked.

He exhaled. He was afraid he was just going to have to go for broke and kiss her. Before she could make another move, he abruptly let go of both her hands, grabbed a hold of her face and placed his lips against hers. Perfect he thought, his fingertips resting against her temples. He closed his eyes and attempted to make telepathic contact.

Then she opened her mouth and began to kiss him using her tongue. He very nearly choked on his own. She couldn't just make this easy, could she? He was growing immensely agitated and finding it hard- er difficult, to concentrate on the task at hand. And why was the library suddenly growing so warm? He would need to take a look at the TARDIS climate control system when he had a few minutes.

River really seemed to be into it. Her hands were now tangled in his hair and she was practically in his lap. He couldn't help but kiss her back in the same fashion. After all, it was the only way he'd get the truth and she was potentially holding back information that could mean life or death.

Despite that this was only a fact finding mission, the Doctor found himself wondering if he was doing things correctly. He supposed he was getting the hang of it. She certainly wasn't complaining.

He was finally starting to achieve a telepathic signal, much to his relief. And then something strange began to happen. He felt a familiar odd tickle in the back of his brain, as if she were reaching into his mind.

And then her voice inside his head, plain as day.

 _Hello sweetie._

His eyes flew open.

 _And don't worry, you're definitely doing it correctly. Keep up the good work._

She was reading his mind!

He pushed her away in a sort of incredulous panic and scooted away from her so fast, he fell onto the floor.

He sat there where he landed, his hearts hammering in his chest, his hair a bit of a mess and his lips feeling a bit bruised. He blinked up at her in shock.

River stood, adjusting her clothes and smoothing down her hair. She was smirking down at him. "Credit where credit is due: you certainly gave it your all." she admitted. "But children really shouldn't play with fire."

"You knew the whole _time_!?" he sputtered.

She threw her head back and laughed. "Spare me. That's not the first time one of you tried to pull that one on me."

He pushed himself up from the floor and stammered. "You d-d-don't understand. I have to know the whole truth." He tried his best to reason with the most unreasonable person he'd met in all his lives. "I don't think you realize what's really going on."

She shrugged. "A girl has to have her secrets." And with that, she tapped a few buttons on the device strapped to her wrist and dematerialized with an electrical zap and a wisp of ozone.

"Uhh... Doctor?" Haven's voice came from behind him, sounding terribly uncomfortable. The Doctor closed his eyes. _Marvelous_.

* * *

He turned to greet her, his face flushed even though he was trying his best to play it off. "Haven, I'm glad to see you up and about."

Haven studied him curiously but didn't ask the dozen or so questions that were floating around her head regarding what she'd just witnessed. Instead she stammered, "W-w-where has River gone?"

The Doctor stuck his hands into his pockets and rolled his eyes ceilingward. "At a guess, I'd say somewhere she probably shouldn't." He looked at her for a moment, his blue eyes full of concern. "How are you feeling?"

Haven hadn't come for small talk or platitudes. There was only one thing she needed to know and she'd decided that the only way to go about it was bluntly. "Doctor, is Cadence dead?"

Had he looked remotely surprised by her question, she would feel stupid to even be asking. After all, Turlough had been talking to her for the last hour, trying to gently convince her that her dream didn't mean anything. As soon as he'd gone to shower, Haven knew she couldn't wait any longer. She went to look for the Doctor. She had to know.

But the Doctor didn't look surprised. Instead, he straightened his coat, and began to pace a bit. Haven just watched and waited.

He stopped after a minute or so and turned to look at her. "I don't know." he admitted at last. "But what I do know is that these androids are from a civilization that is far more technologically advanced than Earth. And that what the humans thought they knew about this world's minerals is all wrong."

Haven continued to stare at him, chewing at her bottom lip. Not exactly the reassurance she'd hoped for. Finally, she asked, "And what's that mean for my sister?"

The Doctor regarded her seriously as if trying to decide something. At last he said, "Haven I don't think their guns are weapons in the traditional sense. And I'm certain they are not molecular dispersal weapons." He shrugged. "There's reason to believe that Cadence isn't gone for good."

Haven let out a breath she didn't notice she'd been holding. Then she narrowed her eyes at him. "Can you think of any reason that some of this information may have made its way into my dream last night?"

The Doctor rebuttoned his coat and smiled in his charming way. "I haven't the faintest idea."

Haven rolled her eyes, still feeling exhausted and uncertain, even if a bit more hopeful. "So what do we do now?" she wondered, arms folded across her chest.

"I suppose I need to go back into the mine to learn more about the androids." The Doctor reached down and picked up River's side pack that she'd left behind on the gold sofa. He sighed as he eyed the item warily. "Though I suppose _first_ we'll need to go rescue River from whatever trouble she's getting herself into." He led the way out of the library and into the corridor.

"I thought you didn't know where she'd gone." Haven remarked, trying to keep up.

"Oh, I don't." he explained, slinging the side pack over his shoulder. "But the TARDIS will."

They reached the control room and the Doctor headed straight for the controls, flipping a series of switches and consulting the computer monitor.

"The TARDIS knows how to find people?" Haven asked, confused.

He tapped a few keys on the keyboard, then smiled at whatever the computer was telling him. "Not strictly speaking, but in this case, she has a bit of an advantage." He turned and faced Haven, looking smug and self satisfied. "It seems my clumsy ruse wasn't entirely in vain. I may not have gotten any useful information telepathically, but I did manage to place a tiny tracking device onto the vortex manipulator she was wearing."

Haven raised her eyebrows, both amused and impressed. "I guess there's some advantage to children playing with fire after all."


	15. Chapter 15

_Aquarius Epta, Trappist 1 Star System, 2080 A.D._

River had been hiding in the closet for a couple minutes trying to make up her mind. She had managed to slip in unseen by the unfriendly looking security fellow posted nearby. Through the vents in the closet door, she had a perfect view of the cockpit entrance he was guarding, just a few meters away and a bit to the left. When she'd arrived, she had been lucky enough to materialize in a maintenance room without a soul around. She'd been even luckier to find herself in the general vicinity of the flight deck. River soon realized that her postmortem tour of Aquarius Epta in 3019 gave her a bit of an advantage. She found her way to the cockpit with relative ease.

Just now she was trying to decide whether she should use her weapon on this Guardian posted outside the door, or use the Vortex Manipulator and the element of surprise to enter the flight deck. Her instincts told her it was best to do away with the threat she had in her sight. If the people inside the cockpit should raise a fuss at her inexplicable appearance, this rather brawny and heavily armed young man might rush in and spoil things. Besides, she thought, looking at the device strapped to her wrist. It wouldn't do to use up all of its power and find herself trapped with no way out.

"Looks like it's _good night_ to Big Boy here first." River murmured, pulling her plasma gun out of a side holster and flipping the 'on' switch. The weapon made a low whining sound as it powered up. She eased the door open without a sound and approached the uniformed guard whose back was currently turned toward her. She stealthily closed the distance and when she was close enough to reach out and touch him, she raised the weapon and cleared her throat.

He turned, blinking in surprise to find her standing there. She gave him her best seductive smile. "Be a doll and hold the door for a lady?" she asked. Her words seemed to propel him into action. His eyes narrowed as he fumbled for his own weapon.

Too late. River fired and he crumpled to the floor. She checked the energy level on her gun to make sure it was ready to go before stepping casually over him to enter the flight deck.

Inside the control room of _Aquarius Epta_ , River found a throng of monitors displaying all manner of readings along the wall near where she stood. She trained her plasma gun straight ahead and took in the rest of her surroundings. There were two individuals standing on the far wall of the small room, their backs turned as they faced the viewport and dashboard underneath. There were half a dozen seats available for the crew here, a closed door off to the right that was likely a loo and all the usual controls one would expect to find in an advanced spacecraft. River took one step forward and suddenly a loud blaring sound filled the flight deck. Wonderful. A proximity alarm.

Both crew members turned around, startled. One was a slight, middle aged man of Asian descent, the other was the flight officer who bore a striking resemblance to River's deceased colleague, Eirenne. River quickly raised her weapon and aimed it at the man.

"Don't be a hero." she instructed in a matter-of-fact fashion as she eased around to turn off the alarm. "Just tell me who you are, what your role is in all this and why exactly I shouldn't kill you where you stand."

The man held his hands up defensively. "There's no need for this Miss. We just fly the ship. We're nobody important."

River saw in her peripheral vision, that Anaïs also had her hands up. She was wide-eyed, looking to the man as if for some kind of signal as to what she should do. The man's eyes never left River. He was smart enough to be afraid at least.

"You're the Captain I take it?" River guessed.

The man nodded. "Yes ma'am. Captain Thorogood Young. And this is First Flight Officer Anaïs Mercer." He shrugged. "We're just trying to land the ship."

River cut her eyes to the viewport and took in the sight of the purple planet they were orbiting. It hadn't been so very long ago that she'd been back in the cockpit of _Aphelion Silver_ with Captain Mackey, ready to set down on this same planet. Not so long ago, but hundreds of years in the future. River returned her attention to the Captain of _Aquarius Apta_.

"I'd like a word alone with Miz Mercer here." she stated. "So why don't you go on and take a few moments to yourself in the bathroom." she nodded toward the closed door.

Young's brow furrowed as he followed her line of sight, then reestablished eye contact. "I'm afraid I can't leave Officer Mercer alone with an armed intruder. Why don't you just tell me what you want and maybe I can be of some assistance."

River chuckled as she adjusted the settings on her gun. "Thorogood is it? You might well be the first man I've heard of on this ship with even the slightest bit of integrity. Good on you." Then she shot him.

She turned her attention back to the young woman who had dropped her hands back down to her sides and was staring down at Young's prone form in disbelief.

"You've _shot_ him." she gasped. "You actually _shot_ him."

River holstered her weapon and sighed. "Oh relax. It was set to 'stun'. He'll be up and around before you know it." She raised an eyebrow and glanced back at the cockpit's entrance. "Now, the muscular gentleman at the door..." River made a face. " _He_ might not be waking up any time soon. Or... ever."

Anaïs seemed to have had enough. "What do you _want_ from me?" she demanded, a bit of fire finally showing in her brown eyes. River felt as if someone had walked over her grave as she took in the eerie resemblance, the uncannily familiar mannerisms and voice.

She composed herself and studied Officer Mercer who was looking at her square in the eye despite how scared she must be. Courageous, just like Eirenne. River's voice became gentler and she crossed her arms over her chest. "How did you get mixed up in all this? Are you aware of what's really going on here?"

Mercer put her hands on her hips. "Have you any idea how difficult it is for a woman to get an officer position on a rig like this?" she asked. "I saw an opportunity and I took it."

River felt like something was gnawing at the edges of her perception. Like she was missing something obvious. She shook her head to clear her mind.

"Have _you_ any idea how many people have died?" River demanded. "How many terrible crimes have been perpetrated on the passengers of this craft?"

Officer Mercer blinked, as if surprised by her level of knowledge. "Who _are_ you and how do you know so much?" she insisted.

River sighed. "It doesn't matter who I am. What matters is there might be a way to help all these people. I've come to warn you that there is a very real threat waiting on the planet below."

Mercer scoffed. "You mean a bigger threat than some lunatic waving a gun about on the flight deck?"

River smiled. "Oh a far bigger threat than me, I assure you. Because I have _some_ conscious guiding my decisions. I'm afraid that the same can't be said for the murderous androids down there." she gestured toward the planet in the viewport.

Mercer's eyes went wide. "What the hell are you saying to me?" she demanded.

River gazed at her intensely and took a few steps closer. "I'm saying that I've already been on that planet and I've seen several of my friends die at the hands of those _things._ " She was very nearly face to face with the young Flight Officer now who was regarding her nervously. River went on, her voice almost a whisper. "I'm saying that those crystals you've come for aren't without a price."

It was then that River felt the barrel of some type of gun against her back. "What do _you_ know about the crystals?" A man's voice hissed.

River spun around, her hands in the air. She might well die, but there was no way she was letting one of these bastards shoot her in the back. She saw a tall man in his thirties dressed casually in slacks and a sweater, aiming his weapon right at her chest. He was tall with dark hair and would be extremely good looking- if it wasn't for his cold gray eyes. River had never found anything particularly attractive in pure evil after all.

Going by his clothes, he wasn't a Guardian or a member of the flight crew. Going by his manner, he was very much in charge. And going by the fact that the door was now standing open, he'd apparently been hiding in the loo this whole time. River mentally kicked herself. She should have checked in there first!

Even amid her self directed anger and surprise at this man's presence, River's calculating mind went into crisis mode and she maintained her outward cool. "I know far more about those crystals and this planet than any of you do." River told him, her green eyes narrowed. "So who are you then? The bathroom attendant?"

A cruel smile appeared on the man's handsome face. "The name's Porter. And I have a feeling you are going to prove very useful to me."

There was an electrical _zap_ and River hit the floor, immediately unconscious.

Apparently Porter's gun had a stun setting as well.

* * *

 _TARDIS, Giannes 2080 A.D._

"No, no, _no_!" The Doctor exclaimed as he paced back and forth along the corridor. "This can't _be._ "

"Doctor... there's something I should probably tell you..." Haven murmured.

The Time Lord had no time for distractions. There was something wrong with the TARDIS. "This doesn't make a bit of sense. Turlough and I did a full diagnostic check up on the dimensional stabilizers only a few weeks ago."

"No seriously." he vaguely heard Haven saying. "I think there's something you should know."

The Doctor shook his head. Moments before, they'd been standing in the console room, ready to dematerialize to go after River. And the next moment, they found themselves standing back in the empty, white corridors, as if they'd been suddenly and silently transported. And it was the same everywhere they went. They kept defaulting back to this very spot.

"It seems that there's some sort of instability in the architectural integrity of the TARDIS. It keeps displacing us, right back to the same part of this corridor." He exhaled heavily. Nothing that could be wrong made much sense. The Doctor shook his head, rubbing the side of his face thoughtfully. "In order for the dimensions to have become this precarious this quickly, something catastrophic would have had to take place with the..." He squinted as a thought came to him. " _The conceptual geometer_. Something would have to be wrong with the conceptual geometer."

Haven grabbed his arm suddenly and shook him. " _Doctor_. Would you _listen_ to me."

The Doctor turned to look at her, suddenly aware she'd been trying to get his attention for some time. "Yes Haven. What is it?" he prompted impatiently.

"Just... something River told me when we first met." Haven explained. "About the TARDIS."

The Doctor's eyes narrowed. She now had his full attention. " _What_ did River tell you about the TARDIS."

Haven shrugged. "She told me she knew more about the TARDIS probably than you do. And I'm pretty sure she didn't want us following her..."

"Sabotage?" The Doctor made a derisive sound. "You're suggesting that River might have somehow _sabotaged_ the TARDIS? That she knows enough about the inner workings of _my_ ship to affect the architectural configurations? And that she would trap us here with no way of leaving while she went off to do something dangerous by herself? "

Haven crossed her arms and gave him a look. His eyes went wide as his own words caught up with him.

"She's sabotaged the TARDIS." he groaned, putting his face in his hands. "Marvelous." After a moment, he realized something and pulled his hands away from his face. He laughed ironically. "Well, if she has, she's made certain that we won't be able to help her if she runs into trouble. I certainly hope she knows what's she's doing." He crossed his arms and rolled his eyes ceilingward.

"But I thought you said we could follow River because you put the tracking thingee on her vortex manipulator." Haven reminded him, looking as if she were starting to panic.

"Yes, well, it won't matter that I planted a tracking device on River if we can't fix this problem." The Doctor gestured all around them. "A tracking signal does us no good if we have no way to go after it."

Suddenly Turlough appeared beside them, looking thoroughly confused. "Doctor, what in the world is going on here?" He looked around the corridor like he too had been standing elsewhere in the TARDIS only a moment before.

The Doctor sighed. "It seems our new friend Miss Song has tampered with the TARDIS's architectural configuration. My best guess, the conceptual geometer."

Turlough raised his eyebrows. "How would _she_ know so much about the inner workings of _your_ TARDIS?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "I'm not entirely sure but Haven here has assured me that River is something of an expert."

"Her bag!" Haven shouted suddenly, pointing at the Doctor's shoulder. "You have her bag. Let's have a look!"

The Doctor pulled the strap of River's pack off his arm and reached for the clasp. "Yes... it seems River left this behind in her hasty departure." He gingerly unclasped the first clasp, hesitant to rummage through her belongings.

Haven giggled. "I think you might have distracted her a bit." she teased.

The Doctor shot her a warning glare and insisted, "I'm sure she was just in a hurry." He pretended not to notice the curious look Turlough was now giving him as he started on the second clasp.

"Don't be so modest." Haven snorted, "She was in quite a state after you were through with her."

"I think that's enough talking now Haven." the Doctor suggested through clenched teeth.

Turlough made a sound of frustration and snatched the bag out of his hands, turning it over and dumping its contents onto the floor of the corridor. "If you aren't going to tell me what you two are talking about, at least let's have a look in this bag." He began to sift through the items but the Doctor stopped him abruptly.

"Don't move." he instructed sternly, his finger indicating one of two strange devices in the pile. "I think these things are explosives."

Turlough and Haven moved as one to flatten themselves against the wall. The Doctor carefully lifted one of the small, oblong devices off the ground and examined it. He exhaled loudly, immensely relieved to find the explosive wasn't armed and that it required a code to even activate it. He set it back down and that's when he noticed a much more significant item just to his right. His eyes narrowed and a string of Gallifreyan curse words caught in his throat.

The conceptual geometer from _his_ TARDIS. He picked it up, shaking his head.

Without a doubt, the most unreasonable person he'd _ever_ met.

* * *

It had been probably thirty minutes since the Doctor had set off to locate the switch room. She and Turlough sat silently, leaning against the wall of the corridor for lack of anywhere else to go.

She sighed and finally broke the silence. "I just don't see how he's supposed to get to where he needs to be if the TARDIS keeps sending us back to this corridor."

Turlough shrugged and pointed to one of the roundels on the wall across from them. "You saw yourself. He accessed some sort of master control from right there in the wall. Said he was able to set her to 'safe mode.'"

Haven narrowed her eyes. "What the hell does that even _mean_?"

Turlough seemed to think about this for a moment. "I suppose it's a sort of temporary measure to stabilize the transdimensional circuits. If he makes it to the switch room beneath the console room in time, he can replace the conceptual geometer and stabilize things permanently."

Haven nodded, at least understanding the gist of what he was saying. "Fingers crossed he's as much of a genius as he claims to be."

Turlough raised his eyebrows, his tone dead serious. "Oh he is." He glanced over at her after a moment. "Are you feeling alright?" he wondered, his voice now sounding suspicious. "And if so... _why_ exactly are you feeling alright?"

Haven could hardly blame him. She'd turned into a catatonic mess when Cadence got shot by the android. Had been inconsolable, unable to function. She imagined he was having a hard time understanding what had changed.

She sighed and looked him in the eye. "If the Doctor is as big of a genius as you seem to think he is, then Cadence is not dead." He opened his mouth to object and she cut him off. "The crystals in that mine... they contain nothing that could be used as a weapon. And they didn't harm the Doctor or River."

Turlough sighed. "Listen... I would like to believe Cadence is alive too, but that is some rather flimsy evidence to be setting your heart on." He reached over and took hold of her hand. "Haven I don't think you should set yourself up to be crushed again." He looked down at her hand in his. "The Doctor _is_ a genius. But even geniuses are wrong from time to time."

Haven side-eyed him. "I'm almost certain he has a theory but he wants to be sure before he shares it with me." She shrugged, feeling the doubt creeping back. "The Doctor doesn't strike me as the type to give false hope to someone." she mumbled.

Turlough shook his head but didn't voice a reply.

They sat in silence for a while before he asked, "What did you mean earlier? When you suggested River had left her bag behind because the Doctor had _distracted_ her. What did you mean by that?"

Haven began to giggle. "Well, just something I accidentally walked into." she explained.

Turlough leaned toward her, clearly dying for details. "And _what_ exactly was that?"

She leaned her head back against the wall, remembering. "If I'm not mistaken, your friend was trying to to get information out of River using his telepathy. Only..." she giggled again.

Turlough laughed despite not having heard the punchline, as if her laughter was contagious. "Only?" he prompted.

"He thought he would be able to trick her by kissing her." she revealed, cracking up laughing.

His eyes nearly popped out of his head. "He didn't!" Turlough gasped.

Haven nodded, still laughing. "Only it didn't go quite as planned. To begin with, River was certainly getting the better of him. I get the feeling she's a bit more... experienced than he is with such matters. And then it seemed she read his mind before he could get a read on hers."

Turlough barely seemed to be listening. He was staring off into space as if everything he understood about the universe had just been set askew. He turned to face her, gesturing emphatically. "The Doctor _kissed_ River? You actually _saw_ this?" he insisted.

Haven smiled. "With my own two eyes."

Turlough laughed, shaking his head. "This is unbelievable. I can't even imagine..."

She was looking at him curiously. "Do you suppose that was his first kiss?" she wondered.

His face grew thoughtful. "I'm not sure. But he's hundreds of years old. I would imagine at some point in his lives he must have snogged someone." The grin reappeared. "But that still must've been something to see." he chuckled.

Haven studied her hands, careful not to look at him when she asked, "Have _you_ ever kissed anyone?"

Turlough seemed thrown for a moment by the question. Finally he replied. "Well... yes. I have. Once or twice." he shrugged, as if embarrassed to be revealing this about himself.

"I haven't." Haven admitted, finally looked up to meet his eyes.

Turlough blinked, as if stunned. "Wait... you mean...?" He sat up a bit straighter, and studied her carefully.

She cleared her throat. "I've never been kissed before." she told him simply.

He couldn't seem to wrap his mind around the fact. "But... how is that...? I mean. If... Didn't they...?" He was having a difficult time forming a coherent sentence on the matter so Haven figured she'd help him out.

"You mean, how is it possible that I've been used by so many men and yet still never been kissed. That's what you want to ask me, right?" Haven asked, her arms crossed.

Turlough sighed and threw his hands up. "Well... yes." he admitted. Now he didn't look embarrassed, he looked guilty.

Haven sighed and took him by the hand once more, hoping to wipe the guilty look off his face. None of what had happened to her was his fault, yet he seemed to internalize it, as if he should somehow be ashamed. It was the damndest thing.

She gazed at him fondly, a small smile on her face. "I'm sure you have a basic understanding of what sexual contact entails." she guessed.

Turlough nervously scratched his forehead. "I've a very good comprehension of the basics, yes." he confirmed.

Haven continued, amused at his growing discomfort. "And you realize that in all of the varied activities that are possible, kissing is not a requirement?"

Turlough tugged at his ear and seemed to grow fascinated with his right shoe. "Yes, I believe I'm starting to get the picture." he murmured.

She chuckled and shook her head.

And then suddenly there was the sound of an electrical discharge and they found themselves on the floor of the console room.

Haven blinked and stood up.

The Doctor was fiddling with some switches on the console. "Turlough. Haven." he greeted, not even looking up from what he was doing.


	16. Chapter 16

_Crew Quarters, Aquarius Epta, 2080 A.D._

River regained consciousness all at once with a gasp, as if startled awake out of a light sleep. She found herself sitting upright in a chair. Actually, to be precise, _tied_ to a chair. She shook her head, trying to figure out what was happening. And then she remembered a man with cold gray eyes. _Porter._

The events that had transpired on the flight deck came back to her in the same hazy way her vision was swimming back into focus. It looked like she was being held in the crew's sleeping quarters. She mumbled a few creative curse words as she surveyed her surroundings and strained against her bindings.

A low voice speaking from behind her nearly stopped her hearts. "Kindly refrain from that sort of language. It's terribly impolite."

Her eyes flew open wide and she attempted to crane her neck to look behind her. " _Doctor_?" she whispered in disbelief. That was when she realized he was working at freeing her from captivity.

"Nearly there." he assured her as he worked at the cord that bound her wrists tightly behind her back.

River was still incredulous. "But... how did you-"

"How did I come to your rescue?" he interrupted in an innocent tone. "Well, as it turns out, if a person wishes to sabotage a ship, it works best if they _don't_ leave behind the component they've removed for the pilot to find."

River rolled her eyes. Of course. She'd accidentally left her side pack in the library after their little make out session.

The bindings fell away and her wrists were free. "There you are." he announced proudly.

"Where's the TARDIS?" she insisted, shaking out her hands to regain a bit of circulation. "How's Haven?"

The Doctor knelt down in front of her and began to cut at the cord binding her left ankle to the chair leg. "The TARDIS is perfectly safe and cloaked one deck below us. And Haven and Turlough were instructed to stay put."

River made a derisive sound. "Because your companions have such a solid history of abiding by the 'don't wander off' rule."

He shot her an annoyed look, before returning to the task at hand. "I'm quite sure that Turlough wouldn't put Haven in any danger. They know to wait twenty five minutes and if we haven't made it back by then, they are to hit the fast return switch to take them back to Giannes."

Her left ankle was free. He moved on to the right.

"Why twenty five minutes?" she asked, rotating her freed foot at the ankle. "Seems a bit of an arbitrary time frame."

"Because _Aquarius Epta_ will be landing in twenty five minutes." he replied matter-of-factly. "Well, now in about nineteen."

She couldn't argue. For all his faults, his sense of time was indisputable. She waited impatiently for him to finish freeing her. River was furious that they'd taken not only her gun but also her vortex manipulator. The bastards. She wondered how the hell they'd ever make it back to the TARDIS without either the weapon or the device. Which got her thinking...

"Doctor, how ever did you manage to get past security?" she questioned. "Surely they had a Guardian posted outside this door."

Her right ankle was finally freed and he closed his knife and returned it to a coat pocket. Then he grinned and held up his right hand, displaying knuckles that looked bruised and possibly even bleeding. "As the saying goes, the bigger they are..." he told her cheerfully, standing back up.

River just stayed put, blinking in confusion. "I'm sorry..." she began. "Are you saying you actually knocked someone out? That you physically hit someone... with your fist?"

He offered his uninjured hand to help her up. "Apparently you don't know me as well as you thought you did." he suggested, visibly amused, as he hauled her to her feet.

She felt slightly wobbly but before she could grab for the chair to right herself, the Doctor moved to support her, one arm firmly around her waist, the other clutching her arm. "Are you alright to walk?" he wondered, genuinely concerned.

She glared up at him, definitely not appreciating this unfamiliar feeling of vulnerability or his tough-guy-hero routine. "I'm perfectly fine." she insisted coldly, shaking him off. She managed to overcome the unsteady feeling through sheer stubbornness.

The Doctor regarded her with a smirk. "Yes. Clearly you have everything under control and need no help from the likes of me." He raised his eyebrows at her, then walked away, hands in his pockets, toward the closed door.

"Sometimes I really hate you." she muttered before following him.

"No you don't." he countered in a friendly manner. "Now, everyone is busy readying for landing so we shouldn't run into any trouble along the way." He placed his hand against the switch plate and the door slid open with a _whoosh_.

River followed him out, stepping over an unconscious guard just outside the door.

She was delighted to find the guard's weapon on the floor near the opposite wall where it had slid when he'd hit the deck. She paused to retrieve it before asking the Doctor in a whisper. "Your handiwork?"

The Doctor shrugged as they moved swiftly down the dim corridor. "He didn't seem interested in chatting." he whispered back.

All was quiet in this section. Frankly, River found the lack of activity unsettling. It was like being on board a dead, abandoned craft. Sort of how the ships _Penumbra_ and _Lady September_ had been found. She shuddered, remembering all the crew members lost to the androids.

"Is anything the matter?" the Doctor asked, glancing over.

She shook her head, refusing to give in to his kindness. "Not that I know of." she told him, regaining her composure

He reached over and took her by the hand firmly, not allowing her to shake him off this time. "Tell me, does my future self enjoy this phony nonchalant attitude of yours? Because I must tell you, I find it rather tedious."

"Oh aren't you clever?" she quipped, barely managing to keep from smiling.

"I do have my moments." he conceded, glancing behind them cautiously. "Just up ahead." he gestured. "We'll take the lift down to the passenger deck."

"The passenger deck?" she murmured. "Doesn't sound like a particularly safe place for anyone."

They'd reached the end of the corridor and he pressed the button to call the lift. "The TARDIS materialized in a galley just off the passengers' canteen. Both were dark and unoccupied." The doors slid open and they stepped on.

"I wonder where everyone is." River remarked as the doors to the lift slid shut and it started down.

"At a guess, I'd say they've all been confined to their quarters until the ship has landed." the Doctor explained, watching the digital display near the top of the lift count off floors. "Fairly standard landing procedures on a large passenger craft like this."

Suddenly the lift ground to a halt and the lights went out.

"Wonderful." River sighed, shaking her head.

The Doctor released her hand and moved away toward the control panel. She could hear him trying all the buttons in the dark to no avail. "No..." he groaned. "No no no..."

River leaned back against the steel wall and closed her eyes. _What next_?

* * *

The Doctor gave up his attempts to operate the clearly broken down lift and made a sound of exasperation. "Apparently I'm not so clever after all." he observed pinching the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger.

"Well... what's happened?" River demanded.

"Another standard landing procedure on large passenger crafts like this is to shut down power to all nonessential systems..." he explained.

"Such as the lift." River finished.

"Such as the lift." he confirmed. He couldn't believe this. Under normal circumstances, he'd have simply taken the stairs but he knew River was still a bit unsteady on her feet. He'd figured taking the lift would be easier on her.

"It seems an easy enough problem to solve." River pointed out from across the pitch black lift.

The Doctor blinked. "How so?"

"Just sonic it for goodness sake." she instructed impatiently. "Surely your sonic screwdriver is advanced enough to start a simple mechanism as an elevator."

The Doctor leaned back against the wall of the lift and intentionally hit his head against it a couple times. _Damn Terileptils_.

"Doctor?" River inquired after a moment of silence.

"I don't _have_ a sonic screwdriver!" he exploded, finally losing his temper. "If I _had_ a sonic screwdriver, don't you think I would have considered using it before now?"

"Well don't get angry with me." she said, raising her voice. "It wasn't _my_ idea to take the lift."

The Doctor laughed in disbelief. "We're only here because _you_ took it upon yourself to go off on some poorly thought out solo mission."

"Nobody told you to come rescue me!" she shouted, stepping closer as if to confront him. "I can take care of myself!"

He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "River. You were unconscious, _tied to a chair_." he explained slowly as if she was mentally impaired.

"What, do you want a medal?" she scoffed. "Have you any idea how many times I've had to come to your rescue?" She seemed to consider her words. "Or _will_ have."

The Doctor was through with this pointless conversation. He felt around in his pockets and was relieved to find he still had his torch with him. He turned it on, illuminating the steel box they were in.

"Thank the gods for small favors." River grumbled, blinking as her eyes adjusted.

"Listen." he said sternly as he swept the torch's beam all around. "If you don't have anything helpful to say, I suggest you stay quiet and let me think. We have less than six minutes now until this craft lands. Now when _that_ happens, we'll be stuck here with no TARDIS and considerably lower odds of making it out of here alive."

"Fine." she agreed grumpily. "So... is there some sort of access panel up top?" she offered.

"Now that _is_ a good question." He said, inspecting the ceiling in the torchlight. "Ah. _There_." He spotted a square panel held in place with four screws. He set the flashlight on it's flat end on the floor so that the light shined upwards, illuminating the panel.

He pulled out his knife and removed his coat, throwing it to the floor of the lift. "Not sure if I'll be able to reach..." he muttered, standing on his toes and reaching up with his arm. No good. He was still nearly an arm's length shy of the panel.

River sighed. "Boost me up." she demanded, holding her hand out for the knife.

The Doctor glanced from the ceiling and back to River. "Are you certain-"

"That I can remove an access panel?" she interrupted incredulously. "For all your faults, I've never known you to be a misogynist." She gestured in a come on gesture with her outstretched hand.

He reluctantly slapped the knife into her palm and offered a boost with his interlaced hands. She climbed up easily, bracing herself on his shoulder briefly.

The Doctor watched as she deftly unscrewed the first screw and let it _clank_ noisily to the floor. She moved on to the next.

"Three minutes." he murmured.

The second screw went _clank._ "Your countdown is not nearly as helpful as you think." she called down to him.

"I'm simply keeping you informed." He grumbled, shifting from one foot to the other. River was by no means a heavy woman but he was already starting to feel the strain on his arms and back from holding her up. He didn't want to insult her so he kept his troubles to himself.

He was also finding it difficult not to notice the proximity of her body. It made no logical sense. Here he was simply helping her reach the ceiling so that they could escape a broken down elevator. Yet her nearness was sort of... unsettling him. And when he caught a glimpse of her exposed abdomen (her reaching was causing her top to ride upwards) he very nearly dropped her.

 _Clank._

"Just one more screw to go!" she exclaimed triumphantly.

He sighed. And less than two minutes to go. "Better make it fast." he murmured.

She made a sound of frustration and reached down with one hand to brace herself on his shoulder again to reposition herself. "This last damn screw." she grumbled, standing up tall once more and using the ceiling to steady herself with her free hand. "I think it's stripped."

 _One minute until touchdown._ Now the Doctor could feel his hearts hammering in his ears. They weren't going to make it. And if Turlough did as he was told, the TARDIS was about to leave them behind.

"Doctor...I don't think I can get this." River said, sounding uncharacteristically anxious.

"Well, can we move the panel at all with that last screw still in place?" he asked urgently. "See if you can move the panel aside enough for us to get through." he encouraged.

River used the knife to try prying the panel out of the way. After a few tries, it popped free and was holding on by that last screw. Now River attempted to turn it away from the opening.

She was giving it everything she had, practically hanging from the panel, but it wouldn't budge. The screw was too tight.

And then the ground beneath the Doctor's feet rumbled and lurched and he lost his balance. He fell to the floor, banging his head and River came down hard on top of him taking the air right out of his lungs. He managed to knock into the torch when he fell so they were in perfect darkness once more.

They stayed on the floor like that in silence for a moment, both slightly stunned.

" _Owwwww_!" he exclaimed finally, one hand going to his head where he'd cracked it against the floor. He felt warm blood. River was all tangled up on top of him and it was too dark to tell which part of her body was where. He was afraid to make any sudden movements for fear he might put his hand somewhere that he shouldn't.

"Ohhh." she groaned. "I've hurt my bloody ankle." She sounded angry that she was physically injured. As if she couldn't believe her ankle could let her down in this way. At least from her voice he could tell roughly how she was positioned on top of him.

"We've landed." he murmured needlessly as they both attempted to extricate themselves from one another. In the process she managed to knee him right in the groin. He fell back to the floor, gasping in pain.

"Oh... whoops." River sounded much more amused than sorry. "Did I... do any damage?"

"Just see if the torch still works?" he suggested between clenched teeth. He tried taking a few deep breaths until the pain began to subside.

"Massage can work wonders on pain you know." she pointed out, her husky voice suddenly much closer. He realized she was hovering over him, her face inches from his.

" _Seriously_?" he sputtered, feeling his face redden. "Right _now_?"

She laughed and moved away from him. "It's just too easy to get you all flustered. A girl can hardly resist." She switched the torch back on. "Still works." she shrugged. She climbed to her feet and immediately hissed in pain. "Yes. Definitely hurt my ankle." River leaned against the wall and kneaded the injured joint.

The Doctor had pulled himself back up to a sitting position when he thought he heard something. Something... familiar. "Wait..." he instructed in a whisper. " _Listen._ "

River looked puzzled but she cocked her head to one side and did as she was told. He knew he was right when he saw her eyes grow as wide as saucers.

It was the distinct sound of energy weapons firing again and again. And now there was something else too.

The sound of screaming.

* * *

 _TARDIS, Passenger Galley, Aquarius Epta 2080 A.D._

"Are they really going to make it back that quickly?" Haven wondered. "Twenty five minutes is not a very long time. Trust me. I grew up on this ship and-"

"There's no sense driving yourself crazy with worry." Turlough insisted, leaning against the console next to her. "The Doctor has everything under control." He adjusted his tie and his brow furrowed. "Hopefully."

She raised her eyebrows at him.

"Well... probably..." he amended, still not sounding even slightly convincing.

"Turlough!" Haven said in exasperation.

"Okay. So he's very likely going to get into some sort of trouble that we'll have to help him out of." He admitted.

Haven giggled. "I do prefer being realistic." she told him.

He frowned. "There's still no sense in worrying. We'll give him his twenty five minutes, then... well, I suppose we'll have to go looking for him."

Haven nodded, her face serious. "So we aren't just going to abandon River and the Doctor to face these maniacs by themselves?"

Turlough sighed. "Of course we won't. We can't."

She was surprised that she felt relieved. Haven had never considered herself to be a particularly brave person. It was funny how a little time in the company of the Doctor had her feeling more courageous than she ever thought she could be.

She suspected that Turlough's presence had something to do with that too. She looked up at him and felt so alive and happy and scared and hopeful and trusting, all at the same time. She also found herself suddenly feeling very bold.

She playfully bumped into his side. "So what can we do for twenty five minutes?" she asked.

Turlough smirked and looked at his watch. "Now it's actually down to nineteen minutes." he pointed out. "The Doctor's been gone for six minutes."

Haven smiled up at him and tugged on his sleeve. "Okay. How do we pass nineteen minutes?"

Turlough still appeared oblivious to her intentions. He regarded her quizzically. "I'm not sure I understand what you mean."

Haven moved a bit closer to him, feeling the warm glow of fluttering fireflies in her stomach. She began to fiddle with the lapels of his black jacket. "Remember what we were talking about in the corridor?" she hinted.

His brows furrowed as he thought back. "We talked about the Doctor and his theories. About you walking in on him and River. And then about you..." Turlough eyes finally seemed to focus on her. She was looking up at him, her brown eyes full of desire. Surely he had to get it now? She took another step closer to him.

She could see it in his eyes, the moment that the penny finally dropped. "Oh." was all he could say. And suddenly he didn't seem to know what to do with his hands. One hovered somewhere over the controls of the TARDIS, fluttering in a frenetic way while the other rubbed at the back of his neck.

Haven was feeling rather encouraged by the fact that he didn't immediately move away from her. So she placed her hands against his chest and slowly moved them up until her arms were around his neck. She had a half smile on her face as she waited patiently for him to make his move.

He just looked at her wordlessly, clearly warring with himself on how to proceed. From the expression that finally settled on his face when he began to speak, she knew he was about to spoil everything. And she wasn't having it.

"Please just shut up." she instructed. He blinked in surprise but complied, his mouth snapping shut before he could get a word out. She sighed and squinted up at him. "For just one moment, do you think you can see me as a normal woman?" she asked. "Just some girl you met one day at the bank or even in a pub. With a normal life and a normal family. A normal childhood."

He looked overcome with emotion at her words and she made an angry sound, unwrapping her arms from around his neck. "See, that right there!" she said, pointing accusingly. "Please just _stop_ feeling sorry for me. Stop ruining this moment with your pity and fear of _damaging_ me or whatever." She crossed her arms and glared at him.

"Can I speak now?" he whispered.

She thought for a moment, then nodded.

He stepped close to her once more and gently placed her arms back around his neck. "You're wrong." he said simply, reaching up and tentatively touching her cheek with his fingertips.

Haven felt her pulse pounding inside her head and an unfamiliar fire burning somewhere low in her belly. It was like the fireflies that had been causing such a commotion moments before had spontaneously combusted. This was getting good. "How so?" she prompted.

"I don't _pity_ you for starters." He explained, brushing her long brown hair back from her face and moving in even closer. "And to answer your question. No."

She blinked. " _No_?"

He finally seemed to know what to do with his hands as they settled gently on each side of her face. He moved his face closer to hers. "No." he whispered. "I can't see you as some _normal_ woman."

And as he leaned in to kiss her, Haven thought to herself:

 _Who wants to be normal anyway? Sounds ever so boring._


	17. Chapter 17

_Broken down lift, Aquarius Epta, 2080 A.D._

When River realized that it was screams she was hearing, she lowered her injured foot back to the floor and uncharacteristically froze. The sounds were coming from above, from the floor they'd just been on. _The flight deck_ , she thought.

The Doctor scrambled to stand up and surveyed the steel box in which they were trapped.

She only vaguely heard him when he spoke. "At a guess, I'd say our android friends have started in with their welcome party."

River didn't respond. In her mind's eye, she was back in the galley on _Aphelion Silver_ facing the Protectors for the first time alongside Frank Lantieri. Poor Frank, standing beside her fearlessly one moment, and gone the next. And there River had stood, unscathed by the androids' energy weapons. She wasn't sure which feeling had been stronger in that moment: The feeling of relief for having survived or the feeling of guilt for being relieved.

" _River_." She looked up, startled, and quickly realized that the Doctor had been trying to get her attention for some time. "The power's back on." he informed her, gesturing impatiently.

She realized that the lights had come back on and that the lift was once more heading down the elevator shaft. That snapped her out of it. She drew the gun she'd gotten from the unconscious Guardian outside the crew's quarters.

The doors to the lift slid open."You said the TARDIS was supposed to be here on the passenger deck, yeah?" River murmured.

"It was." He cleared his throat and looked upward. The ambush on the crew was still taking place. It was still audible even from the passenger deck. Their eyes met. "Up." they both said in unison.

They headed back up to the flight deck without speaking. The sound of frightened humans under attack was growing closer. River secretly felt comforted when the Doctor took her hand momentarily and gave it a little squeeze.

When the lift stopped, he Doctor muttered. "We shouldn't be here. We're meddling in a set of circumstances that _you_ will happen across in-"

"A bit late to worry about interfering, don't you think?" River interrupted dryly. The door slid open and she didn't give him the chance to answer. She limped forward, leading the way with the barrel of her weapon.

The first thing River noticed as they stepped out into the hallway was that the screaming had stopped. The second thing she noticed was that one of the androids was headed right for them. There wasn't another soul in sight.

River aimed for its head and fired. The metal creature crashed to the deck noisily. She heard the Doctor right behind her make an exasperated noise.

She turned to look at him, eyes narrowed. "Friend of yours, was he?"

He shook his head and sputtered, "We must _talk_ to them! See what we can learn if-"

"I'll save you the trouble." she interrupted, then sighed, still feeling reluctant to share. "I've had a chat with one. The beings that created the androids... they live on the planet Felix." She watched his reaction play out on his face. First shock, then disbelief, then anger. Oh he was angry alright. The look in his eye was a look she'd seen before and she didn't much like being on the receiving end of it.

"You've known this whole time." he said softly, his nostrils flaring.

"Oh for pity's sake Doctor!" she shouted. "What the _hell_ does it matter now?"

The Doctor leaned toward her and looked her square in the eye. "It matters because I don't believe what's happening here is molecular dispersal." River blinked but before she could reply, he added. "I believe it's electrostatic particle conveyance."

River very nearly dropped the gun at his words. Her eyes grew huge as the full implication of what he was saying hit her. "But that means..."

"Yes." he nodded, still looking thoroughly pissed off. "Now let's see if there's even anyone left here to rescue." He headed past her up the corridor, completely unarmed and obviously not her biggest fan at the moment.

River blinked rapidly. "Is he right?" she whispered to herself as she limped after him, feeling truly disorientated.

He ducked into the first door he came to and called out. "Anyone still here?"

River stood at the door to the crew's quarters where she'd been held captive less than an hour ago and stared at the floor. The Guardian who the Doctor knocked out was no longer laying on the ground. So the android had shot him. But had it killed him? Or just sent him somewhere else...?

Just then, a second android emerged from the crew's quarters, inches from where she stood. It startled her so badly that she stumbled against the opposite wall and fumbled with her gun. The creature fired and as before, she felt the energy beam as it struck her (this time in the ribs on her left side) and then seemed to course right through her. Otherwise, the blast had no effect. Once she had her grip back, she didn't hesitate, didn't care what the Doctor wanted- she just blew it's damn head off.

She leaned against the wall and breathed a sigh of relief, checked her weapon. Still at half energy level. Despite the fact that this was her fourth encounter with the bastards, she still felt that same tremendous sense of stunned relief when its weapon had no effect on her.

She noticed the Doctor had joined her after his search. He was looking down at the felled creature. "I don't think any of the crew is left." he said quietly.

She nodded toward the end of the hallway. "You check the cockpit yet?" she wondered, thinking of Officer Mercer and Captain Young.

"Empty, aside from one of these fellows- minus a head." he replied. He looked all around them. "Just three androids do you think?" he asked, squinting skeptically.

River shrugged. "Maybe they were only the advance team."

"We should head down." He sighed, motioning toward the elevator. "Figure out a way to protect the passengers."

River glanced back toward the cockpit. "I think I'll just do one more search of this deck." she murmured, her gun at the ready.

The Doctor sighed, his voice once more brimming with animosity. "I've told you that-" When he saw her expression though, he stopped and abruptly cleared his throat, plainly striving for patience. "Suit yourself. But when you're through, meet me back in that passenger canteen I told you about." He gave her a look like he was daring her to argue but she just nodded so he turned to go.

"I don't suppose the TARDIS will still be waiting." she called after him without much hope.

He stopped and turned to look at her. "I said twenty five minutes, it's been over an hour." He raised his eyebrows, his tone firm. "She better not be."

* * *

This time, when the doors to the lift slid open on the passenger deck, the Doctor thought he detected movement in the corridor beyond the elevator vestibule.

He quickly flattened himself against the wall, peeking around the corner. He saw a man with dark hair dressed in casual slacks and a sweater quickly heading down the corridor away from him. The man was clearly not a Guardian of Protection but he _was_ armed. The Doctor had a feeling it might be easier to negotiate with the armed fellow in the sweater than one of the Guardians. He sighed. Sometimes he wondered why he hadn't just stayed on Gallifrey. He stepped out into the hall.

"Excuse me!" he said loudly.

The man startled and swung round, his weapon trained on the unexpected visitor. "Who the hell are _you_..." His gray eyes narrowed. "Ohhh I see... You're the blonde bloke with the laundry cart."

The Doctor recognized him from the stolen files. Lawrence Porter, III. Cadence had said he ran the show here and was particularly nasty. The Doctor mentally facepalmed. So much for negotiating. He strove to remain calm. "My name's the Doctor-"

"I suppose you're with the sexy bird with the curly hair." Porter interrupted, his gun gripped in trembling hands. "Tell me what you know." Clearly his run in with the androids had unnerved him. In the Doctor's experience, there wasn't anything more dangerous than a human who was afraid.

The Doctor held his hands high in the air and didn't move an inch. "Yes, well. Since you've asked, I happen to know who you are and I know what's really going on with the Aquarius Epta Project. But... at the moment, I'm not concerned with all that. I only want to talk to you about the androids and how we can keep the passengers safe."

Porter gave a little humorless laugh. "If you honestly believe I'm concerned about these passengers, you don't know as much as you seem to think." He stepped closer to the Doctor, still aiming with an unsteady hand. "Now tell me _Doctor_. Do those murderous androids work for you? Or do you work for _them_?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Neither. But I do have information about them that you might not have." He shrugged. "We could help each other."

This time Porter laughed somewhat jovially, as if the Doctor had just told him a good joke. "You must be the strangest, most naive man I've ever met." He shook his head and narrowed his eyes, but the smile remained. "Haven't you learned the rules of the universe? The man with the gun makes the rules." He gestured with the barrel of his gun. "Walk to me slowly. We're getting out of here. I have just the spot for you."

With his free hand, Porter pulled a mobile communication device from his pocket and turned it on. "Porter to all Coordinators and Guardians of Protection. Proceed to the compound. Gen 2 stays put for now. Keep them on lock down."

The Doctor walked toward him slowly, his hands still up, his mind working fast. The passengers couldn't be left unprotected. Even if the androids weren't shooting to kill people, the Doctor still had no idea what was happening to them. He needed more time to work that out. And he needed to let River know what was going on so she could take care of things while he couldn't.

There was an intercom panel on the wall to his right. He was familiar with the system thanks to his telepathic access to the Barber sisters' minds. Just as he was passing the panel, he deliberately tripped and fell against the wall. As he fumbled and inconspicuously activated the switch to communicate with the flight deck, he hoped his sudden movements didn't inadvertently activate Porter's trigger finger.

Porter just made a sound of impatience and strode over to grab the Doctor by his arm. "Perhaps we should move a little faster. There's no telling how many of those _things_ have gotten on board."

"Listen Mr. Porter." the Doctor said in a loud, clear voice, dragging his feet. "I know you have a gun pointed at me and that you think the best move is to abandon ship. But I must tell you, I think it's a _huge_ mistake to simply leave all the passengers behind like this. They'll be sitting ducks to the androids."

Porter tugged at his arm a bit more aggressively. "I'm sorry." he scoffed. "Did I not make it clear that I don't _give_ a fuck?"

"But aren't they property of Carr Enterprises?" the Doctor asked quickly. "Surely you can't just _dispose_ of all those perfectly good slaves like that?"

Porter seemed to falter at his words. He stopped tugging, his eyes narrowed. "We'll leave a small guard behind to watch over the ship. But until we get rid of those damn androids, the passengers are better controlled locked in their rooms." He took his radio back out and commanded. "I need the following Guardians to stay behind and keep watch. Russell, Moran, both Smiths, Rios, Chapman, Bell, Carver, Wilson and Morris. I want you to patrol the entire craft until directed further."

The Doctor kept his expression unreadable and tried not to look over at the intercom. He wasn't pleased that he'd unwittingly caused a group of armed Guardians to be left on board but at least River might know what was happening now. He could only hope she got all that. This time when Porter pulled on his arm, he followed.

* * *

 _TARDIS, Passenger Galley, Aquarius Epta 2080 A.D._

When the two of them finally broke away from the kiss, Haven stumbled backwards a bit and gave a small laugh, still feeling slightly unsteady. _Wow._ That had been _incredible_. She put her fingertips to her lips and looked up at Turlough. His brow was furrowed like he was thinking. Hmm. She was certainly dying to know what was on his mind.

But before she could even ask, he quickly blurted out, "There's something I've been meaning to tell you and I know this is a terrible time to bring it up but..." He stopped, apparently unable to meet her eyes _._

 _Seriously?_

Haven crossed her arms and braced herself for some more ridiculous news. "Go on then. I'm sure _this_ will be good." She chuckled in disbelief.

He sighed. "Do you remember that day in the console room, before we hacked the Project's mainframe? You asked me where I was from..." He cleared his throat and adjusted his coat. "I never got the chance to answer.

Her eyes narrowed. "And...?"

He chewed his bottom lip. "I'm from a place called Trion."

Haven uncrossed her arms, cocked her head to one side. "Sooo...Is that a city? A country?"

Turlough finally looked her dead in her eyes. "It's a planet."

She blinked as an unfamiliar pain stabbed through her abdomen. "A planet?" she repeated. "So... you're saying that... you're..."

Turlough clasped his hands together and looked down at them. "I'm not a human. I'm a Trion."

Haven felt a peculiar buzz through her whole body when he said he wasn't human. It was like shock mixed with humiliation mixed with dread. She tried like hell not to let her feelings show. "So you're an alien then." She sounded surprisingly composed to her own ears.

His blue eyes were pleading with her when he pointed out. "To me, _you're_ an alien."

She took a step back from him, shaking her head, the disturbing feeling inside growing in the pit of her stomach. "Yes, but you've known I'm human from the beginning."

A faint alarm beeped and Turlough looked at his wrist. "Twenty five minutes." he sighed, silencing it with the press of a button. "It's been twenty five minutes and the Doctor's not made it back yet." He shrugged and after a moment's pause, headed to the console.

Haven nodded, forcing herself to snap out of her feelings. There was far more at stake than the two of them and their little emotional drama. "Right. So...? How do we proceed?" She joined him at the console and leaned there, trying to ignore the gnawing in her guts. What was this _new_ pain? She couldn't name it and that bothered her most of all. After all, with what she'd endured her entire life, she couldn't imagine a way in which she hadn't been hurt.

Turlough consulted the computer and tapped at the keys. "He was right on time. I'll give him that. We've landed." He scratched the side of his face. "I suppose he's gone and got himself captured _again_." He said this in a sort of bored, annoyed way one might complain about someone who was constantly late.

"So we go after him then?" she guessed, popping her knuckles.

Turlough raised his eyebrows. "He was headed for the flight deck. I suppose we need to make our way up there before the corridors are teeming with disembarking passengers."

Haven was already headed for the door. "Let's go." she commanded over her shoulder.

"Haven... wait." he called, rushing to catch up.

She turned, her jaw set, suddenly feeling completely ill-equipped to deal with whatever was happening between them. "Yes?" she asked in a dismissive manner.

He sighed and looked at her with imploring eyes. "You're cross with me." A statement, not a question.

She scoffed at his oversimplification of what she was feeling and headed out of the TARDIS into the darkened kitchen. He scrambled after her.

"There's a back way that can take us directly up to the Captain's quarters." she informed him in a whisper as they crept through the galley . "Probably best to stick to the back route since we aren't armed."

He followed close behind as she went out through a side door and they ended up in a tiny room with a steel spiral staircase headed up.

They hadn't gone two steps when Turlough started in again. "I just don't think it's right for you to look at me differently because I'm not a human." he whispered fiercely.

She stopped and turned to look at him in disbelief. Could he really be that thick?

"You fuckin lied to me." she reminded him. "You had so many chances before now to tell me this about yourself." She shook her head, then turned and continued up the stairs.

He was right behind her. "There was just never a good time to bring it up." he insisted.

She laughed, continuing upwards. "So... right after you snogged my face off seemed an opportune moment then?"

He made an exasperated sound. "I said I knew the timing was bad. But I couldn't put it off any longer."

They'd reached a landing and a door. "Shit." she murmured. She turned to face him, beyond annoyed. "It's locked."

"Oh let me see it." he muttered, sounding grouchy. She moved aside so he could check out the lock. "Amazing." he chuckled after a moment. "A door on a spaceship that requires an actual metal key." He dug in his pants pocket and pulled out a small lock picking tool with multiple picks that unfolded from the casing. "I'll have it open in no time."

Haven crossed her arms and leaned against the wall out of his way. "Oh..." she replied. "Well... thanks."

"Even us aliens are good for something I suppose, aren't we?" he answered in a mocking tone as he worked at the lock.

"Oh for chrissakes! This isn't about you being an alien!" She blurted.

"So you're saying you don't care that I'm not human. You're just angry that you didn't know I'm not human." he speculated, trying another of the picks on the door.

"But it's like you tricked me, don't you see? " she explained. "You heard how freaked out I was about the Doctor being a Time Lord so you chose to keep your background a secret. And you let me get close to you, to rely on you knowing I didn't have all the facts."

And then she finally got it. It came to her then, the name of the feeling his admission had inspired. That kick to the stomach. Disappointment. Disappointment in someone she'd come to believe in. And that was why it was new to her. Aside from Cadence, she'd never really had faith in another person.

Turlough had let her down.

"I was just afraid." he admitted after a long silence, pausing with his lock picking. "I was afraid you wouldn't look at me the same." And then there was a _click_ and the lock tumbled in the door. He stepped back confused, the tool still in his hand. A young woman around Haven's age stumbled backwards onto the landing as the door opened out. She looked familiar and was dressed in a flight crew uniform.

"Help!" the girl croaked, grabbing onto Turlough's arm. "There are robots on the flight deck! They're shooting everyone!"

Haven peered into the dimness of the Captain's quarters. The woman had apparently locked herself in the room alone. Someone was banging loudly on the other door that led out to the main flight deck corridor.

Turlough slammed the door shut and glanced over at Haven, eyes wide. "We need to get back to the TARDIS." He insisted, his tone brooking no argument. He gestured for the women to go first.

And Haven didn't argue. She grabbed the terrified woman by the hand and headed down the steep spiral staircase.

"So what's your name?" she asked, just for the sake of saying something.

"Anaïs." the woman answered. " Anaïs Mercer.


	18. Chapter 18

**_A/N Hello readers! Apologies for my lengthy absence. I've started a new job but things are settling back down now and I anticipate being able to resume more frequent posting. Hope you are enjoying Star-Crossed so far. Please do take a moment to let me know your thoughts and thanks so much for reading my stories! -Ruinous79_**

* * *

 _Aquarius Epta, 2080 A.D._

As the Doctor took the lift back down to the passenger deck, River headed toward the cockpit. She kept her gun ready, prepared to shoot anyone or anything.

It had been less than an hour since the Doctor had come to her rescue. When they'd made their way down this corridor then, she'd noticed how quiet it had seemed as everyone on board prepared for landing. But this? The atmosphere now on the flight deck was indescribably still and eerie.

Each door she came to, River peered inside and called out loudly. Again and again, she came across empty rooms, got no replies. By the time she'd limped her way to the cockpit, she could hear her heartsbeat inside her head. The Doctor had said there was a headless android and nobody else inside. So why did she doubt him?

"Women's intuition perhaps." she murmured to herself. She sighed and opened the door.

Just as advertised, she came across a decapitated android nearly in the center of the room. As she stepped over it, her eyes went to the small restroom door that nearly blended in with its surroundings. The door that Porter had hid behind when she'd entered earlier.

River crossed the cockpit quickly and wrenched the door open, her weapon ready to fire if necessary. Sure enough, there curled up on the floor of the tiny loo was Captain Young.

She breathed a sigh of relief. "It's alright. You can come out now. We need to get off this ship." She holstered her gun and stood back, leaning against the door to keep it open.

Young stood slowly, looked around blinking. He appeared to be in shock. River wasn't entirely convinced he was focused on her, even when his eyes finally landed on her. "Wh-what the hell was that thing!?" He stepped past her out into the cockpit. He circled the felled android warily. "Is it definitely dead?"

River nodded. "It's definitely dead. And to answer your question, this _thing_ is one of many androids created for the sole purpose of protecting the crystals you idiots decided you had to have." She crossed her arms, glaring. Even if he had shown a modicum of honor in being protective of his flight officer earlier, he was still the Captain of this ship. The Captain of a ship for a project that had abducted thousands of people with the sole purpose of making them into slaves.

He looked up and seemed to finally really see her. "You're the lunatic that shot me." he accused, his brow furrowed.

She narrowed her eyes and made a sound of derision. "If I'd shot you, you wouldn't be here talking to me right now. I merely _stunned_ you."

Young didn't look particularly impressed by the distinction. He rolled his eyes and returned his attention to the headless intruder on the deck. He knelt down beside the metal form, his curiosity clearly overcoming his fear. He reached out a hand and touched a steel leg gingerly. "Androids." he breathed.

River's patience was running out. "Listen, it's all very exciting and quite a lot to take in but we really do need to get off this ship at once."

Captain Young looked back up at her, wonder still apparent in his eyes. "Who made these remarkable machines?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Isn't that the question of the hour." she murmured. He'd been away from civilization for forty years. He could be forgiven for being impressed with the technology.

And that's when it finally hit River like a ton of bricks.

She took a step back from his crouched form, eyes wide, a buzzing sound in her head.

"Captain Young." she began in a strange voice. That still, eerie feeling pervaded her once more. "What age are you?"

That got his attention. He stood slowly, eyeing her. He cleared his throat but didn't speak.

"Captain!" she persisted, her mind spinning with confusion. The man couldn't have been been fifty. Her hearts hammered as she thought of Anaïs Mercer's youthful features. The Flight Officer's earlier words echoed in River's ears. _Have you any idea how difficult it is for a woman to get an officer position on a rig like this?_

How had it taken so damn long to notice?

Young spoke at last, breaking through the tumult in River's head. "Thorogood." he said, nearly in a whisper.

She blinked.

"You should probably call me Thorogood." he explained, decades of remorse visible in his gentle eyes.

River pressed her lips together, impatient, then nodded. "Thorogood then. What age are you?" she persisted. Her fingertips danced across the the handle of her holstered weapon.

He swallowed. "Eighty four years." he admitted, looking somewhere past her shoulder, his voice flat.

"And what about Flight Officer Mercer?" she continued, adrenaline coursing through her system.

Young raised his eyebrows. "I believe Anaïs is over seventy years old." he answered.

"How is that even possible?" River insisted, shaking her head. "How is it that neither of you have aged in forty years?"

Young nodded toward the door. "Perhaps we should walk and talk." he suggested, as if it finally dawned on him that hanging around might be a bad idea. He edged toward the door.

Before River could respond, the cockpit's loudspeaker emitted a beep followed by a rush of static. Then a familiar voice came on, mid sentence.

" _...have a gun pointed at me and you think the best move is to abandon ship. But I must tell you..."_

It was the Doctor. River rolled her eyes. Naturally, someone was holding him at gunpoint. She heard him mention something about the passengers being sitting ducks for the andriods.

A different voice chimed in, dripping with sarcasm.

 _I'm sorry. Did I not make it clear that I don't give a fuck?_

 _But aren't they the property of Carr Enterprises,_ the Doctor's voice insisted. _Surely you can't just dispose of all those perfectly good slaves like that._

It was clear that he was trying to let River know what was happening. The man holding the Doctor at gunpoint was apparently speaking into a portable radio now, instructing a group of Guardians to stay behind to guard the locked up passengers.

"Porter." Young muttered, disgusted.

River raised her eyebrows. "I take it you're not a fan?"

The Captain's eyes stared straight into River's and she saw a level of fear there that even the android in the cockpit hadn't inspired. "He's a psychopath." he told her simply.

"I take that as in insult to psychopaths." she mumbled, genuinely offended.

"Who is the other man?" Thorogood wondered.

"He's a friend of mine. Someone here to help." she looked at him meaningfully. "Someone who wants to do the right thing."

She headed for the corridor with Young on her heels. As they made their way, River asked, "Did the androids get everyone else? Is Mercer gone?"

He scoffed. "So what if she is?"

River stopped in her tracks and looked back at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"

He smiled for the first time since she'd made his acquaintance. It was a sad, ironic smile and it didn't quite reach his eyes. "I don't know what your connection is to Miz Mercer. Or to any of this for that matter." he explained. "But I assure you, she's not on your side."

River narrowed her eyes. "What the hell are you talking about?" she demanded.

"That woman. The so- called 'flight officer'?" His face grew deadly serious once more. "She's even worse than Porter."

* * *

Porter kept his energy weapon trained on the Doctor as they made their way down the corridor of the passenger deck of _Aquarius Epta_.

"Ahead." the armed man pointed out tersely. "In the alcove." He poked the Doctor in the ribs with his weapon.

The Doctor glanced back at him, eyes narrowed. There wasn't much that he despised more than a bully. Except perhaps a sociopathic slaver at least partially responsible for the death of an entire generation of people. He could feel the burning outrage welling up within him... but he was silent as he followed his captor's instructions and headed into the alcove.

The Doctor was nothing if not patient. He simply had to bide his time to figure out how to escape his predicament. Lashing out would do no good.

"There." Porter said emphatically. "The door with the card access reader."

When they reached the door, Porter swiped his badge and the door slid open to reveal a small elevator.

They stepped on and Porter pressed one of the only three buttons on the panel. The elevator began its descent.

The Doctor sighed and placed his hands in his pockets absently as he remembered being stuck on the elevator with River earlier. He'd had his fill of lifts for one day.

"Hands where I can see them _Doctor._ " Porter hissed between clenched teeth, his weapon suddenly aimed directly between the Time Lord's eyes.

The Doctor removed his hands from his pockets slowly, but there must have been something about his eyes or the smirk on his youthful features that gave away the fact that he felt more inconvenienced than intimidated. "Haven't you learned the rules of the universe?" he taunted because he really couldn't help it. "The man with the vital information isn't expendable."

Porter was unamused. The Doctor guessed that by the way the unhinged man cracked him across the face with the butt of his gun in response to his sarcasm.

The Doctor stumbled against the wall, tasting blood. He shook his head to clear away the stars dancing behind his lids, then rubbed the side of his face, eyeing Porter in disgust all the while. He remained conscious and nothing seemed to be broken but his lip was cut and he would have quite a bruise on his jaw later.

The lift ground to a stop and the door slid open.

Porter manhandled him out of the lift into a brightly lit laboratory.

Porter headed straight for a workstation and accessed a computer, leaving the Doctor leaning beside the now closed elevator door. He spat blood onto the floor in annoyance and found himself thinking some uncharacteristically violent thoughts. He was so caught up in his little revenge fantasy that it was a moment before he'd really taken in his surroundings.

When he did, he blinked in astonishment, looking all around. "Interesting," he breathed.

The laboratory was far more sophisticated than one would expect to see on a passenger vessel. But, as he was constantly reminded, this was no ordinary passenger vessel. There were two refrigeration units with clear glass doors holding shelves full of carefully labeled specimens. Just from where he stood he saw the computers, centrifuges, incubators and autoclaves. This was a working laboratory with advanced equipment that rivaled what he himself used on the TARDIS. This was a laboratory that had been put to extensive use over the forty year journey.

The Doctor stepped further into the room, squinting around curiously. He was dimly aware that Porter had finished at the computer and had moved on to one of the laboratory refrigerators, emptying trays of specimens into a large duffel bag. He was so caught up in gathering items for his escape that he seemed to have entirely forgotten that he wasn't alone. The energy weapon sat abandoned at the computer he'd been using.

There was clearly a window of opportunity here for the Doctor to grab the upper hand, to edge around the room and get his hands on the gun while Porter was distracted. But something stopped him in his tracks.

 _Forty years._ He thought to himself. _This laboratory had been put to extensive use over the forty year journey._ He froze in the middle of the room, epiphany nearly taking the wind out of him.

How had they not realized this? The crew... the Coordinators... the Guardians of Protection. Not one of them appeared to be over middle age. It troubled the Doctor greatly that the fact had escaped his own attention, but it seemed absolutely implausible that Haven and Cadence had not noticed this glaring anomaly. All those years.

"It has to be some sort of perception filter." he murmured softly, his brow knit in confusion.

Porter still didn't appear to notice him. The Doctor watched as the impossibly youthful looking man moved on to what appeared to be a small cryogenic storage unit. Porter turned a black knob and the top of the unit opened with a hiss. His movements were now frantic, his expression anxious.

The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest and cleared his throat, now completely abandoning the idea of going for the gun. "Packing for a sleepover?" he asked in a conversational manner.

Porter looked up, startled. He seemed to realize all at once that he no longer had the gun. Porter turned and spotted the weapon across the room on the desk where he'd left, then looked back to the Doctor nervously.

"My life's work." he explained, sweat visible on his brow. "I can't just leave it all behind."

"Your life's work you say?" the Doctor narrowed his eyes. "And just exactly how long of a life have you had Mr. Porter?"

The Doctor's words were like a physical blow. Porter actually winced. But he recovered fairly quickly, his eyes once more cutting over to his gun. "I haven't the time or the energy to explain something so complex and significant to some pacifist half wit." he spat, his eyes daring the Doctor to argue.

The Doctor just raised his eyebrows, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "You discovered the fountain of youth." he supplied congenially. "How nice for you."

Porter scoffed at his words, then zipped the duffel bag closed. "Oh it's nice for a whole lot more than just me. This discovery, this scientific breakthrough will change _everything_." He grinned a downright unnerving grin and shouldered the bag.

The Doctor stood there quietly as Porter made for his gun at a near run. He kept glancing back at the Doctor, obviously confused that his captive hadn't tried to take the gun for himself.

When Porter reached the workstation, he scooped up the weapon and brought it to bear once more.

" _Now_ we can leave." he announced. The bravado was still there to some extent, but the voice sounded hollow, like maybe he realized he had lost the upper hand, despite the fact that he held the loaded gun and had an army of Guardians just a radio call away.

There was a bitter little smile on the Doctor's face. "You and the others on this repulsive project were in complete control of all the variables for forty years. You ran the show. You called the shots." His jaw tightened and his wise blue eyes bore into the other man's dead gray eyes. "You played _god_. But you're running scared now. Because it never even occurred to you that this little discovery wasn't yours to make. Someone was here before you and they aren't giving up those minerals without a fight."

There was now perspiration running down Porter's face. He swallowed and gestured with his gun. "You'll tell me everything you know about those metal _things_." he hissed.

The Doctor sighed and rolled his eyes. "I won't if they break in here and kill us first. Weren't we just leaving?"

Porter nodded and headed toward the lift, pushing the Doctor along as he came. Porter swiped his badge again and the door slid open.

Once they were both on board and the lift began to move, Porter looked at him intensely for a beat. When he finally spoke, he just sounded tired. "Why didn't you just take my gun? You had your chance to leave me behind... even to shoot me. Why _didn't_ you?"

The lift _dinged_ as it reached its final destination and the door slid open once more.

The Doctor shrugged and and returned the man's gaze. "I'm not entirely certain." he admitted. "But I can assure you, you wouldn't be the first horrible human being I've had to save from himself."

* * *

By the time the three of them had reached the TARDIS, Haven was worried sick for River and the Doctor. As they'd descended the spiral staircase, she kept looking back, half expecting an android to give chase, half expecting to see one of their friends running to join them.

As Turlough fumbled for his TARDIS key, Haven made a sound of frustration.

"This isn't right. We can't just _leave_ them behind." she announced harshly. Haven glanced at the young woman who'd joined them upstairs and shrugged. "Our friends were supposed to be on the flight deck. They're missing." she explained.

Anaïs studied her curiously. "You mean that River person?" she asked.

Haven nodded in response just as Turlough finally wrenched the door open.

"For now, we regroup." he said sternly, pulling both the women into the console room none too gently.

"Hey!" Haven objected.

He shut the door behind them and leaned against it, blocking anyone from leaving. He stared at Haven defiantly. "And I'm not letting _you_ go back out there, so don't even ask."

" _Seriously_?" she snorted in disbelief. "How very caveman of you." Her eyes narrowed and she got right in his face. "I could have sworn that we agreed we are not leaving them to face all these maniacs alone. What ever happened to that? Huh?" she demanded.

The newcomer Anaïs seemed unaware of the argument raging nearby. She was preoccupied, wandered around muttering curse words as she took in the sight of the expansive control room.

Turlough rolled his eyes. "I'll tell you what happened to _that_. You remember when those androids showed up on the ship and started shooting people? Well that was a game changer." He gave her a meaningful look. "There is no way in _hell_ I'm letting them near you again." he pledged firmly.

Haven scoffed. "That's not exactly your decision to make." she countered. "I'm not about to stand around in the safety of the Doctor's ship while he's out risking his life to do what's right."

Tears came to her eyes as she truly grasped in that moment that the Doctor, a complete stranger only days ago, had jumped in with both feet to fight _her_ battles just because it was the right thing to do. The thought that someone cared enough to stand up for her was nearly overwhelming. And she sure as hell wasn't about to take that kind of friend for granted.

She pointed a finger at Turlough as she told him emotionally. "We are not leaving them in the middle of this."

Turlough made a sound of frustration. "Don't you _get it_?" he shouted. "There are exactly _two_ people who we know of completely unaffected by the androids' weapons- the Doctor and River. Wouldn't you say they're sort of uniquely qualified to deal with this particular set of circumstances?"

The newcomer to the TARDIS had finally seemed to accept her new transdimensional reality and chose that moment to join the conversation.

"Wait a minute." Anaïs began, "You mean to tell me that your friends are _impervious_ to the androids' weapons?" She shook her head. "But... how? Why?"

"We honestly don't know." Haven told her frankly. She then glared at Turlough who was still blocking the door like some intergalactic bodyguard. "But who's to say that those creatures don't have some other weapon we've yet to see? A weapon that's a bit more effective against the both of them." She crossed her arms,

"Okay... look." Anaïs broke in, exasperated. "I'm going to need the two of you to fill in some of the blanks here." She sighed. "Who are all of you any way? And what _is_ this place?"

Haven and Turlough exchanged a look, then Haven finally turned to give Anaïs her full attention. It was like she was seeing her for the first time and she suddenly became aware of the fact that they may have invited an enemy into the TARDIS. She swallowed.

"I'm Haven Barber and I'm... I'm a passenger from Gen 2. This is Turlough and he, the Doctor and River are my friends from somewhere else." Her brown eyes bore into the woman dressed in a flight crew uniform. "I don't know how much of the truth you actually know but your employers are some seriously evil bastards."

Anaïs blinked, looking genuinely floored by her words. "What in god's name do you mean by that?"

Turlough broke in. "The short version: the Aquarius Epta Project has nothing to do with colonization. It's a mining project and the passengers were brought here to work the mines."

" _Mines_?" Anaïs sputtered. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Haven sighed, feeling slightly placated by the woman's apparent cluelessness. "All because some scientists found some miracle crystals on this planet and Carr Enterprises saw profit written all over it." She gazed at Anaïs intently. "Did you know they killed my parents? All of Gen 1?"

Anaïs gasped and looked horrified. "Certainly not." She shook her head. "Look, I don't know where _you're_ getting your information from, but I can assure you, this is the first I'm hearing of any of this." She adjusted her uniform and made a face. "They don't really tell the flight crew much of anything I guess." she murmured.

Haven glanced back at Turlough and saw suspicion in his eyes and that he was frowning ever so slightly at their guest. Before she could ask what his problem was, Anaïs cut in.

"So where are we right now?" she wondered, looking all around. "We walked into a small blue box of a structure and yet we're in this large room. It appears to be some sort of ship."


	19. Chapter 19

_Aquarius Epta, Giannes_

"Where would Porter have taken the Doctor?" River demanded as she and the Captain exited the lift at the Passenger Deck.

Young sighed. "If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say they've taken one of the Rover vehicles and set off for the compound."

River peeked around the corner into the corridor, her gun at the ready.

No one in sight. She stepped out with Young right behind.

"How many of the Rover vehicles are there?" River wondered, heading down the quiet hallway swiftly.

"Uh... four I think." He kept looking behind them, clearly jumpy.

"Afraid the androids might be after you?" she asked sweetly. "It'd serve you right if they did come for you. I can't understand how a seemingly nice man like yourself could possibly condone all that's taken place."

Young caught up to walk beside her and scoffed. "If it were only that simple. You act as if I fully understood what was happening with the project when I signed on. The fact is, none of the crew _or_ the operations staff knew much of anything going in."

River gave him a little side-eye, still unsure how sincere he was. "But surely you must have figured things out after a while."

Young shrugged. "By the time we discovered what was happening to the passengers, it was a bit late for anyone to do anything." He raised his eyebrows. "The Guardians of Protection and the Coordinators ran this ship. And anyone who fell out of line... anyone who tried to speak out against what they were doing... well... they simply disappeared. They were never seen or heard from again."

She was quiet as she took in this new bit of information.

"And I wasn't looking around for androids just then." Young continued, glancing behind him once more. "I'm keeping an eye out for the Guardians. Porter ordered a handful to stay on board. If they find out I'm with you..." He trailed off like the words didn't really even need to be said.

River's eyes grew hard as she remembered what had been done to Haven. Thirteen years old. A cruel little smile appeared on her face. "Oh don't you worry. I _have_ something for the Guardians."

The Captain looked as if he didn't doubt that she did.

"So how do we get to that passenger canteen?" She reminded him. "There's still a chance that my friends are there with the Doctor's ship."

Young nodded. "Just ahead to the right."

They entered the darkened room full of tables and chairs.

"In the galley you said?" he asked.

"Yes." she sighed. "At least that's where they _were_."

He gestured to a doorway at the back of the canteen near some sort of beverage machine.

River honestly didn't know one way or the other if Turlough would have followed the Doctor's orders and got themselves to safety before the ship landed. She simply didn't know the red headed man well enough to determine his level of bravery... or stupidity.

Young was leading the way and when he reached the galley, he turned on the light and he gasped.

"But that's... It's a..." he stammered.

River ran to catch up, her hearts thumping with excitement. _Could it be?_

And sure enough, there, in the corner of the galley beside a shelf full of steel pots and pans was the blue police box.

"The TARDIS." she breathed, heading straight for the door and rapping loudly.

The door was opened almost at once by Haven.

"River!" she exclaimed in delight, then rushed up and wrapped her arms around River's neck.

River chuckled fondly. "Okay. Yes... I'm fine sweetie. You're choking me now."

Haven released her and ushered them both in, though she eyed the Captain warily.

Turlough was at the controls, a baffled look on his face. He glanced up. "Where's the Doctor?" he wondered, his attention returning almost immediately to the console.

River stepped in further. "It seems he's been taken captive by one Lawrence Porter, III." she announced.

"Oh no!" Haven exclaimed in disgust. "Not _that_ psychopath."

River frowned. _Rude_. Then she sighed and pointed to Young. "Now, this gentleman is Captain Thorogood Young." She glanced over at him. "He claims to be an unwitting participant in all this... _but_ I've yet to determine whether he's really a goodie or a baddie."

Haven circled around the Captain, looking him up and down. "You're the one's been flying the ship all this time, yeah?" she asked, her expression unreadable.

He nodded, his brow furrowed. "I take it you're a passenger then?" River saw that the look of regret was back in his kind brown eyes. Genuine regret, she was sure of it.

Haven nodded back, almost imperceptibly. "That's right. I'm from the generation that didn't get _murdered_. I suppose I was meant to be a slave." She crossed her arms, her expression cold.

River watched the exchange, realizing that Haven _still_ didn't see it. She still didn't notice that the Captain- who had been flying the ship all this time- was far too young. She decided to wait to bring it up. They had enough on their hands at the moment. She'd leave the questionable science to the Doctor.

She cleared her throat and turned to address the red head. "I'm pleased to see you've stuck around." She ambled over to the console where Turlough still looked quite confused. "I guess you don't listen to the Doctor any better than any of his other companions ever did- or will." She leaned against the control panel and squinted at Turlough curiously. "Are you even listening to me?" she asked.

Turlough looked up, blinking in surprise that River was suddenly right next to him. He rubbed the side of his face. "There's something wrong with the TARDIS." he explained, shaking his head. "Ever since we returned from the flight deck..."

River's eyes narrowed. "You were on the flight deck?" she demanded.

Haven joined them, leaving Young to finally notice the impossibly large room he'd walked into.

"Well we couldn't just leave you two on your own." Haven explained, glancing quickly to Turlough for back up. "We were coming to find you but when we got to the flight deck-"

"The androids." River guessed, nodding her understanding.

Turlough sighed. "We ran to get away from them and when we got back to the TARDIS, the controls just started acting... strange."

River frowned, hip-bumping Turlough out of the way to examine the indicator lights and dials herself. She ignored the dirty look this earned her. "Did you come across anyone else while you were out and about?" she wondered, tapping a few keys on the computer.

Haven shrugged. "Nope. Nobody else. We saw the androids and came right back to figure out our next move."

* * *

Porter was driving the Rover through the darkness and the snow much faster than was strictly necessary, at least in the Doctor's opinion. He checked his seat belt twice and braced himself against the dashboard with his knee.

"I don't suppose my reminding you that the androids seem to live inside the caves behind the mine will deter you from heading in that direction?" the Doctor asked dryly.

Porter glanced sideways at him. "Be that as it may, we must establish command immediately and determine our next move." He shifted, grinding the gears terribly.

The Doctor rolled his eyes. Typical human. Wanted to rule the universe and live forever but couldn't even be bothered to learn to drive a manual transmission properly.

"So where exactly does that leave me?" the Doctor wondered.

Porter chuckled. "Well, you'll be the star of the show Doctor. You're going to tell us everything you know about these androids and how to destroy them."

The Doctor sighed but didn't disabuse the madman of the notion. The more that Porter thought he knew, the less likely he'd be to shoot him. It would buy him some time at least.

"So you just intend to leave the passengers on the ship?" he asked, intentionally changing the subject.

Porter shrugged. "For now it's probably the safest place for them."

The Doctor hoped River was working on a plan to help the passengers.

Suddenly Porter's radio emitted a _bleep_ followed by a hiss of static. "Mercer to Porter. Come in Porter."

 _Mercer_. The Doctor's eyes narrowed. Wasn't that the name of the woman River had gone to speak to? He began to pay very close attention.

Porter thumbed the button on the speaker mic clipped to the top of his sweater. "Go ahead Mercer."

"10-20 Porter?" the woman asked. The Doctor knew 10-20 to mean _identify your position._

"En route to the compound along with a rather valuable new friend." Porter replied triumphantly, glancing over at the Doctor in the passenger seat. "Glad to hear you got away from the androids."

Mercer chuckled. "Oh, I met a couple _valuable_ friends of my own and they helped me to get away." Her tone was mock sincere and the Doctor started to get a very bad feeling.

Porter squinted into the darkness, finally slowing down as the compound came into sight. The ship had landed miles from the compound as it seemed there wasn't any place flat enough for it to land nearby.

"So tell me all about these new friends." Porter encouraged into the radio mic. "Are you still with them?"

"I am... though they don't know it." She laughed in a nasty sort of way and the Doctor felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. A very bad feeling indeed. "They brought me to their little ship... oh you should see it Porter! Technology like you've never imagined. I can't even fly it myself. Which is why I'm hiding on board at the moment."

The Doctor's eyes grew wide. _Did she mean the TARDIS?_

Porter laughed appreciatively and drove around to the side of the compound to a bay door.

"How big _is_ this little ship that you're able to hide from them?" he wondered, as the door began to rise at the touch of a button on the dash. He pulled into the now open parking bay. The garage space all looked brand new, never used until now. He parked the Rover.

"Oh... that's the kicker. It's apparently _infinite_." Mercer crowed. The Doctor's eyes closed as adrenaline shot through his system. It had to be the TARDIS.

"I'm in a little laboratory off the corridor." Mercer continued. "I very much doubt they'll come across me if they don't even know to look for me."

Porter quickly pulled his gun back out and held it on the Doctor now that they were no longer in motion. His expression was quizzical as he once more addressed the radio. "And why wouldn't they know to look for you?" he questioned.

Mercer laughed outright now. "I happened to have a bottle of Vergessen on me. I have a feeling they don't even remember meeting me."

Had she _drugged_ his friends? The Doctor felt fear race through him at the implications. If this woman was on board the TARDIS and Turlough and Haven didn't even know it, they were in terrible danger. He suddenly felt very helpless and wished like hell he had some way to communicate with River again.

* * *

"There there, Old Girl." River soothed, stroking the console. "What's the matter with you?"

Haven looked all around as the control room seemed to hum in response.

River made a sound of frustration. "I don't understand this. These readings don't make any sense."

Turlough rolled his eyes as he leaned against the console nearby. "Just as I said." he mumbled.

"So does this mean you can't fly her?" Haven wondered, definitely feeling left out as the only one in the room who had never flown a bloody spaceship. Young sat in a jumpseat, looking a bit ill.

"Oh I can still fly her." River murmured. "For now at least, all the basic controls seem to be functioning properly. But it will have to be on manual nav. None of the automatic systems seem to be working. And there's something going on with the temporal drift compensators as well as all the environmental sensors." She shook her head, her eyes narrowed. "It's as if she's trying to tell me something."

"You talk about this ship as if it were an actual sentient being." Young chimed in suddenly.

They all turned to look at him and in unison replied. "She is."

Young blinked in surprise at their response and cleared his throat. "So what exactly is our next move here?" he asked, looking directly at River. Haven noticed that after their initial exchange, he couldn't seem to meet her eyes. He seemed otherwise nice enough, his eyes were kind. But she still couldn't bring herself to trust him.

River shrugged. "We need to find the Doctor immediately. Get him out of harm's way."

"If he's with Porter, he's most definitely in danger." Haven muttered, pacing the console room.

"She's right." the Captain agreed, standing. "And god help all of you if Mercer survived the android attack."

Haven felt a strange sensation down her spine. _Mercer._ She shook her head. It was is if someone had walked over her grave.

She looked up and saw that Turlough was looking at her strangely. She broke eye contact, still upset over his dishonesty. She walked over to stand beside River at the controls.

"So what exactly is Mercer's story?" River asked casually, not even looking up from the controls.

Young exhaled heavily. "Where do I start? Anaïs is the daughter of Benedict Carr... the owner and CEO of Carr Enterprises."

River and Haven both gasped in surprise at this news.

"Well... why does she go by Mercer if her father is Carr?" Turlough wondered.

Young rolled his eyes. "Supposedly it was so she wouldn't be treated any differently. She came onboard under the guise of being a flight officer. And she is trained quite well. She could have captained the ship herself." He shrugged. "The reality is, she was a corporate spy looking out for daddy's interests. She's been pulling the strings from behind the scenes all the while. She and Porter." He said the name as if it had a bad taste.

Before she even knew she was going to speak, Haven blurted. "Is she the one who ordered my parents to be killed?"

It was silent in the control room for a moment. Finally the Captain answered.

"Yes. She was." A look of anger flashed across his face. "It had been their plan all along."

Haven swallowed her feelings and nodded. Then quickly looked at River to change the subject.

"So... where exactly are we headed to find the Doctor?" she asked.

"Young seems to think Porter's taken him to the miner's compound." River answered, inputting something into the computer. It looked like navigational coordinates.

"That's what he said over the radio upon landing." Young shrugged. "They'll convene there and figure out their next move. Everyone would be eager to finally set foot on the planet."

River scoffed. "Apparently they were given a brochure for a different planet then. They'll be setting foot in cold and snowy darkness." She shook her head. "We can't very well materialize in the reception area." She sighed. "We'll need to be more strategic."

Young came around and finally joined them at the console. He snapped his fingers as if he'd had a revelation. "I've seen the plans for the compound." he told them. "And I seem to remember there is some sort of unfinished basement area."

River grinned. "That'll do nicely." She squinted at the computer monitor and tapped a few more keys. "Alright Old Girl. Time to find the Doctor." She pulled the dematerialization lever and the familiar wheezing sound began to fill the room.

Haven let out a sigh of relief. At least they would be doing something. She didn't want to think about her parents or her sister or that horrible Mercer woman. She shivered inexplicably.

River busied herself at the controls and Captain Young watched closely, obviously fascinated by the technology.

Haven didn't even notice when Turlough sneaked up behind her.

"I must talk to you." His voice suddenly right behind her and his hand on her arm nearly made her jump out of her skin.

" _God! Don't do that!_ " she snapped, turning around to face him. He blinked in surprise, pulling his hand away as if he'd been burned. She immediately felt bad for shouting at him.

She sighed. "I'm sorry. What is it?" She crossed her arms and waited.

Turlough had an odd look on his face. He shook his head. "I'm not sure. But something's not right here."

Haven felt that tickly feeling shoot down her spine once more. She tried to keep her tone casual. "I don't know what you mean." she replied, wishing this feeling would go away. This feeling like maybe she forgot to do something important.

Turlough studied her carefully and she saw his blue eyes widen. "You _do_ know what I mean. I can see it." Haven averted her eyes but didn't deny it. He began to speak quickly. "Can you remember what happened... after we kissed I mean? I know we kissed and then you got angry with me when I told you the truth but then..." He narrowed his eyes. "There's nothing. I know we went up to the flight deck and narrowly escaped the androids but..." he shook his head. "It's like I can remember _having the memory_ of going up there. But I don't actually _remember_ going up there at all."

Haven's heart was thumping in her chest. Yeah. She knew exactly what he was talking about. There was a glitch in her memory of events as well. Turlough was absolutely correct. Something wasn't right here. Not at all.


	20. Chapter 20

**_A/N Hello readers. Fair warning, a bit of sexiness toward the end of this chapter. Nothing earth shattering, merely suggestive._**

* * *

 _TARDIS, Lower Level of Giannes Mining Compound_

Professor Song and Captain Young were getting ready to leave the TARDIS to go look for the Doctor. River was insisting that Haven and Turlough should hang back for the time being. Haven was having none of it.

"River, I really think it makes more sense for us to stay together." The brunette crossed her arms in a willful fashion and looked over at Turlough as if for support.

She must have been disappointed when he didn't rush to take her side. He returned her gaze wordlessly, his brow knit as if he were torn over the best course of action.

River wasn't in the mood to wait around for him to contribute to the conversation. She raised her eyebrows at Haven, her voice was stern. "Well I happen to think what makes the _most_ sense is keeping you alive and if that means keeping you locked away in the TARDIS, that's just what I'll do." She challenged Turlough with a look. "I think Turlough would agree that putting you in harm's way solves nothing."

Turlough sighed and scratched the side of his head, cleared his throat. "Look Haven... we _are_ currently in the villain's lair. Maybe it is best if we wait for the Doctor to return before-"

"I can't believe this." Haven scoffed angrily, cutting him off mid mansplanation. "Are you guys forgetting that my _sister_ is still missing... possibly even dead? That those bloody bastards out there _killed_ my mum and dad... _stole my fucking life_? I can't wait around any longer. I'll go mad!"

Turlough appeared speechless at her outburst, Young just looked uncomfortable. River looked down at her own shoes for a beat, determined not to let Haven change her mind. She could certainly empathize with the young woman. River knew what it felt like to break free after being held powerless for so long. She herself would never allow herself to be sidelined with the stakes so high. But River had made a promise. A promise to a woman who'd been dead for nearly a thousand years. Or thirty years. It was all so relative, time.

When she looked back up, she let go off the tension in her jaw, abandoned the harsh resolve in her eyes. She closed the distance between Haven and herself, her voice lower and gentler. "I know you are angry and sad and fed up with being lied to and jerked around. And god knows you've every right." Haven blinked, evidently surprised at River's change in tone. She squinted at River, her body language signaling that she was at least willing to listen.

River took the young woman by the hand and gazed at her fondly. "This isn't about you being too weak or too helpless to handle yourself. This is strategic. You must know that. I can't be worried about keeping you safe and be as focused as I need to be out there. I know you're very brave and very clever just as I know that if something goes wrong, you and Turlough will still be around to have our backs." She looked into Haven's uncertain brown eyes meaningfully. "Do you think you can do that?"

Haven turned her face away, trying to mask the tears of frustration shining in her eyes. "I suppose if it's for the best _strategically_." she mumbled. She was far too clever to completely buy River's reasoning but far too reasonable to argue with the logic behind it.

Turlough looked immensely relieved. "Right. We'll keep an eye on things on the scanner. And I'll see if I can't figure out what's gone wrong with the controls." He was talking too fast, his tone a touch too cheerful for the moment. Clearly he intended to lighten the mood but Haven wouldn't even look in his direction. She still looked disappointed and troubled and after a moment of awkward silence, she grumbled a good bye and headed off into the corridors.

Turlough watched after her, made a sound of frustration and covered his face with his hands.

River grinned. "Trouble in paradise?" she asked in a friendly (if mocking) way.

Turlough turned to face her and sighed. "I just can't seem to say the right thing to her." He sputtered. He looked bewildered, maybe even slightly mad. Oh he definitely had it bad for her.

River chuckled. "Its seems to me that you're doing far _too much_ talking. Maybe that's the trouble." She raised an eyebrow suggestively and nodded her farewell. River turned to go, but not before she spotted the blush creeping over his face and neck.

Some men were just too virtuous for their own good. It was annoying.

River had a quick flash of the blonde Doctor's clumsy attempt at seduction back in the library. There had been a moment- just a moment- in all that flailing and panicked restraint that he'd been completely into it. And so had she.

She fanned herself and grinned imperceptibly. Annoying, yet completely irresistible.

She and Young stepped out of the TARDIS into the dark basement of the Aquarius Epta compound. She turned on her torch and held her gun at the ready.

"Which way?" she whispered.

Young stepped out into the dank empty space, shining his own small flashlight around the inky black room. "It looks as though we've landed in an unused portion of the basement intended for storage. My guess is that the stairs are this way." He gestured to a doorway and had no sooner taken a step in that direction when River spotted movement off to the right.

An android.

"Thorogood! Look out!" River shouted, running and knocking him to the ground. She'd only just covered him with her body when she felt the now familiar pulse of the android's energy weapon strike her body, right in the middle of her back. In one fluid movement, she rolled over, got her gun in front of her and took the thing's head off.

"J-j-jesus Christ!" Young breathed, scrambling to stand. "Are you alright?" He was looking River up and down in disbelief.

Once she'd ascertained that there were no more of their metal friends lurking nearby, River climbed to her feet, dusting herself off. She tried to keep her breathing normal and her voice casual even though she felt like she might have a bilateral coronary. "Perfectly fine. I suggest we get moving. We're rather cornered down here."

The Captain shook his head. "You didn't have to do that. You don't even need me anymore." He squinted at her, perplexed. "You just saved my life."

River fixed him with an impatient glare. "Yes well, I do that sometimes. Don't take it too personally. It's just a reflex." And with that, she turned and headed off into the darkness to find her husband.

* * *

The compound that had been empty and abandoned only hours before was now teeming with humans. Porter walked the Doctor in through a side entrance that came out just inside the now crowded reception area. The sharp contrast between the dim, empty stairwell they left behind and the brightly lit room filled with people was disorientating.

There was a fairly steady stream of men and woman coming in through the front door out of the cold, having been forced to walk almost two miles from where the ship had landed. Some took off their coats but many stood by as if ready to run back outside if necessary.

The Doctor glanced around warily. It was too quiet for this many people in one place... a calm before the storm. The anxiety in the room was palpable. Judging by the nervous Guardians patrolling every corner, he wasn't the only one who felt it.

Word had gotten around about the android attack on the flight deck and people were scared. Things weren't as they'd been told all this time. There was no welcome party, no unpacking and settling in. And there certainly wasn't anyone stepping up to be a leader.

Porter looked overwhelmed and agitated as they made their way through the reception area . When they'd made their way into the lobby, he stopped and called over a nearby Guardian. They whispered to each other briefly. It was clear the man didn't have a plan.

There was an undercurrent of chaos here... of pandemonium waiting to happen. Somebody needed to neutralize this powder keg and offer some sort of direction. Somebody needed to protect all these people who might not even deserve to be protected.

The Doctor sighed and did what he always did. "Ladies and gentlemen. If I could have everyone's attention."

The crowd pressed toward him, filling the lobby, eager for someone to take the reins.

Porter nearly broke his neck turning to see what he was up to. "Oh I really don't think so." he spat, striding over and holding the barrel of his gun against the Time Lord's head. "You need to remember who's in charge here!"

"Porter, you said you brought me along because I could be useful." the Doctor insisted, ignoring both the gun and the testosterone. "You need to get some armed Guardians to protect all entrances to the compound. And then get these people locked down in a secure location. No access to or from the mine, do you understand? It's the only way to keep everyone safe from the androids."

There was a collective gasp in the room followed by a flurry of conversation as the Doctor confirmed the rumors.

A new kind of apprehension appeared behind Porter's eyes as he looked around the room packed with people. "And what exactly are my men supposed to do when those things come for us?" His voice was still in command but the shaking hand holding the gun gave him away. He seemed to only just now grasp how far in over his head he actually was. He was scared.

The Doctor rolled his eyes ceilingward. Bullies were so predictable. "Have them aim for the head." he instructed sharply, before turning his back on the man and his gun. He looked all around, then pointed at random to a woman wearing a Coordinator uniform. "You there... Abbie." he read from her name tag. "Start a list of names so we can keep track of who all we have here, won't you?"

The blonde woman seemed to be in a daze as she nodded and fumbled for a notepad and pen from a nearby desk.

The Doctor stuck his hands into his pockets as he surveyed the room. A Guardian standing off to himself caught his eye. "And you." he gestured. "Your job is to make certain that once everyone has had their name recorded, they make their way to their sleeping quarters. And close and lock the doors behind them."

Some of the voices in the crowd became vehement, protesting the proposed lock down. The Guardian looked uncertainly to Porter for confirmation of the Doctor's authority but Porter seemed to be having a bit of an existential crisis. His gun had dropped to his side. He looked positively impotent, pitiful. The Doctor might have even felt sorry for the man... if he weren't an absolute horror of a human being.

After getting no response from Porter, the Guardian finally approached the Doctor, a bundle of nerves. "Sir... I was just wondering..." The Doctor studied the Guardian. He looked to be in his twenties (though looks meant nothing with this bunch). He was slight of build, prematurely bald, and he was trying so very hard to be brave.

"What were you wondering?" The Doctor asked kindly. There was something about the man's expression that had caused the Doctor to notice him in the first place. Something he couldn't put a name to.

The Guardian's jaw clenched and his voice dropped to a near whisper. "The passengers... what's going to happen to them?"

Compassion. That was what he'd seen in the man's face. For the first time since he'd encountered anyone involved in this ignoble project, the Doctor felt a spark of hope for humanity. He smiled.

"What's your name?" he asked.

The man swallowed. "Schultz... sir." he responded.

"Well then. Guardian of Protection Schultz. _I_ intend to watch out for the passengers. It would seem you have some people to protect as well." The Doctor crossed his arms and nodded toward the doorway across the room.

* * *

Haven had decided to ignore the knocking on the bedroom door. She needed a moment to fall apart and she didn't feel much like having an audience. Her world was a shit storm at the moment. So much uncertainty and helplessness, not to mention feeling worried about the Doctor and River. Now on top of everything else, she felt she couldn't even trust her own mind.

She sat on the edge of the bed with tears streaming down her face, trying to get her head straight, to access that little glitch she'd detected in her memory. This feeling was all too familiar to her. Could she have been drugged again? Had Turlough been drugged?

She scrubbed her hands down her face, wishing he would take the hint and stop with the knocking already. It was all just too much. What she wanted more than anything else in this moment, was to go back in time to before she knew how terrible her life actually was. Back to when she was just another ignorant passenger on a one way journey to slavery. Back with Cadence.

The door burst open and Turlough stood there looking grouchy. (To be fair, he really had been knocking for quite some time.) Before he could speak, Haven was on her feet, her hands held up as if in surrender.

"I can't take anymore right now. I just can't." She made as if to close the door on him but his foot blocked her attempt and he entered the room anyway.

"Would you shut up and come here." he complained grumpily. She was stunned when he walked directly over and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly against him.

That was it. She lost it.

As she sobbed heavily into his chest, Turlough rested his chin on her head and pet her long hair. "Shh. It's going to be just fine." he assured her. How he managed to summon the (almost convincing) confidence was beyond her. All she knew for sure was that it felt good to be in his arms.

He stood patiently, holding her until little by little, she calmed down.

As she pulled away from him, she couldn't help but giggle. She tugged at his tie playfully. "Look at you. You're soaked. I've cried all over your shirt."

Turlough chuckled, looking down at her. "Now that's simply unforgivable." he quipped, pretending to examine his soggy tie disapprovingly.

Haven was overwhelmed with gratitude. Overwhelmed by the warmth and inner strength she felt whenever he was around. She looked up into his blue eyes, twinkling with humor and knew without a doubt that she loved him. She didn't give a damn that he wasn't human or that they were in this beyond ridiculous situation. She just knew that she loved him. And she knew she'd never get the words out right. So she chose to show him instead.

She stood on her tiptoes, grabbed him by his face and pressed her mouth against his, hard. He hesitated for a split second before pulling her in closer and returning the fierce kiss.

Oh that kiss.

It was far more passionate then their first kiss had been. More erotic than sensual, more aggressive than sweet. They were embattled in their embrace, working out all their conflicting feelings on each other.

Haven was quickly finding that this attraction business was no joke. The sensation of desire that overtook her was frightening in its intensity. She pushed him against the door, slamming it closed in the process. His hands had made their way into her long hair and he was holding her head firmly against his like he wasn't about to let her escape. And she didn't want to.

She allowed her hands to trail down his body, along his chest to his abdomen. They stopped short of his belt but she heard his breath hitch at the contact.

Yes. This was definitely happening. And she would make sure of it.

She felt flushed and tingly and pulled away to catch her breath. "I want you." she gasped. "Right now. Don't argue." She tugged on the lapels of his coat and backed toward the bed.

Turlough looked slightly dazed as he responded breathlessly. "Alright then." Before she could even register surprise at his instant agreement, his mouth was on hers once more as he allowed himself to be led toward temptation.

They fell together onto the bed and the feeling of his body pressing down on top of her was breathtaking. Haven couldn't believe that a man could make her feel this way, after all the years she'd gone through the motions of the act. His hands on her body were a revelation. He wasn't holding back anything now. He was touching her everywhere and she was so turned on she couldn't see straight. She gripped at the sheets beneath her and moaned.

As electrical impulses fired and lit up new pathways across her brain and her system was flooded with unfamiliar chemicals, a buried memory flashed unbidden across her consciousness.

That woman. That woman they'd met outside the Captain's quarters.

 _There are robots on the flight deck! They're shooting everyone!_

Haven's eyes flew open.

She sat up so fast, she threw Turlough off the bed.

"Mercer..." she murmured.

"A simple 'no' would have sufficed." he grumbled from where he'd landed on the floor. He sat up, looking slightly shell shocked.

"She was here. In the TARDIS." Haven blurted, by way of explanation. She was kneeling on the bed, blinking rapidly as she tried to keep her grip on the fleeting particles of memory.

Turlough stood, looking at her through narrowed eyes. "Feel free to let me know if anyone can join this conversation or if it's a private matter." He crossed his arms, glaring at her in disbelief.

"No... don't you see? She must have made us forget her..." Haven hopped down from the bed and began to pace. She closed her eyes and tried to see it again. The three of them running down the stairs together. The confrontation in the TARDIS.

 _They don't really tell the flight crew much of anything I guess._

She felt dizziness overtake her and put a hand to her head, a flashbulb going off in her brain. She sat down hard on the bed and took a deep breath, willing the vertigo away.

"Haven... what's happening to you?" When she finally opened her eyes, Turlough was knelt down in front of her, looking terribly concerned. "Are you hurt or...?"

It was clear he had no idea what she was on about. From the look on his face, the poor man probably thought he'd somehow traumatized her.

She sighed and reached out to touch his face gently. "I'm fine. I promise. I'm not having some psychotic break or post traumatic stress reaction. It's just... I remember now. That empty space in our memory that we talked about..."

His eyes widened. "Tell me." he prompted.


	21. Chapter 21

_Aquarius Epta Mining Compound, Giannes_

"River, what are _you_ doing here?" The Doctor's harsh greeting was hardly welcoming.

"Well it's good to see that you're safe too." She remarked dryly, holstering her weapon.

River and Young had found the Doctor conversing with one of the Guardians of Protection in the otherwise empty office section of the compound.

She was relieved to find that the Doctor didn't appear to be in any immediate danger and wasn't being held against his will... but his tone could certainly use an adjustment.

He sighed in evident exasperation. "Did you not hear what I was _saying_ on the intercom?" he asked impatiently. "I needed you to keep an eye on the passengers." He wore a disapproving expression and she very much wanted to slap the self-righteousness right off of his handsome face.

River narrowed her eyes at him. "I am fully aware that the passengers are going to need our help. But there _are_ priorities, and keeping _you_ safe long enough to save the day happens to be number one on my list."

The Doctor blinked in surprise at her words and cleared his throat. "Very well then..." he mumbled, putting his hands in his pockets and breaking eye contact.

She rolled her eyes and nodded toward the man dressed in security garb. "Who's your friend?" she wondered, looking the man over. Certainly not the typically macho Guardian of Protection. She could see that from his eyes. They looked... sort of innocent.

The Doctor patted the man on the shoulder and introduced him. "This is Leigh Schultz. Leigh, this is River Song. And who is _your_ friend?" the Doctor wondered gazing at the Captain curiously.

Young stuck his hand out to shake. "Captain Thorogood Young." he supplied. "And you must be the all-knowing and wonderful Doctor I keep hearing about."

The Doctor glanced toward River with a self-satisfied smile. "One and the same." he replied, turning back to the Captain.

She inwardly seethed and quickly changed the subject. "I'd say if we're going to help those passengers, we should probably hop in the TARDIS and get to it."

The Doctor's eyes grew wide as if something had only just occurred to him and he gripped River's arm. "The TARDIS is here?"

River gave him a strange look. "Well yes. How else do you think I got here? She's right down in the basement."

There was something akin to panic in his eyes. "Are Haven and Turlough safe?" he demanded.

Now River was thoroughly confused. "Well of course they are. They're in the TARDIS. We've only just left them." She motioned as if they should head that way.

The Doctor shook his head, his voice rising in exasperation. "I'm afraid you don't understand. I overheard a radio call between Porter and that Mercer woman when we first arrived..."

River and Young exchanged an alarmed look.

"Somehow she had encountered Turlough and Haven and had gotten on board the TARDIS with them." The Doctor explained quickly. "She claimed to have drugged them, tinkered with their minds so they'd have no memory of even meeting her. That she was still hiding somewhere on board and they had no idea."

River felt her stomach drop, and dread squeeze her hearts.

"Haven." she gasped.

And without waiting for one more word, River turned and ran back toward the TARDIS.

She took the stairs down to the lower level two at a time, cursing herself all the way.

The TARDIS had been trying to tell her something was wrong. That was why the controls were being uncooperative. She should have known somehow.

She could hear that the Doctor, Young and Schultz were not too far behind her on the stairs.

She had her torch ready for the darkness and ran for all she was worth, hoping that it wasn't too late.

She stopped short when they reached the back corner of the room where the blue box had been parked.

 _Had been parked_.

The three men nearly ran right into her back.

"She's gone." River whispered. She turned to face them in disbelief. "They're gone."

The Doctor shouted something uncharacteristically impolite in Gallifreyan and covered his face with one hand.

"So what does that mean? What should we do now?" Schultz wondered looking from River to the Doctor and back again.

"It means that Turlough and Haven are in big trouble." Young sighed, looking for once, very nearly his true age.

River felt completely responsible and very much wanted to blow a hole in something or set something on fire, or scream, or pummel someone. She felt tears stinging her eyes and turned away to regain her composure. She imagined that the Doctor- rightfully- blamed _her_ and she hardly wanted to be accused of feeling sorry for herself in this moment.

When she felt a hand touch her back gently, the last person she expected to look up and see was him. His blue eyes were still full of concern, but now it seemed he was concerned for her. She quickly wiped at her eyes to remove the evidence.

"This isn't your fault." he told her in a low voice. "You had no way of knowing."

"Sure." she replied curtly, shaking off his hand along with the unexpected absolution. "So what can we do now?"

He looked like he was about to say something else to her, then changed his mind and cleared his throat. He turned to face the others. "It would seem we have yet another calamity on our hands. My craft is missing and I fear it may have been hijacked with two of my friends still on board."

Young looked thoughtful. "Is there any way we can contact your friends?" he suggested.

The Doctor exhaled loudly. "Neither Turlough or Haven carry any sort of mobile device." He began to pace the way he did when he was thinking. "The only line of communication I might have with the TARDIS would be a direct link to the console room."

"Which you assume has been taken over by this Mercer woman." Schultz guessed.

The Doctor nodded.

"What makes you so sure this woman is any way capable of piloting the TARDIS?" River wondered, her mind turning things over.

The Doctor shrugged. "The TARDIS does have some automatic functions. I don't imagine it would take an experienced pilot too long to figure out how to work something like the fast return switch."

As realization dawned, River felt a small glimmer of hope. "Oh you clever Girl." she breathed.

* * *

The Doctor frowned. "What am I missing?" he demanded.

"The automatic controls, every last one of them, stopped working." River explained, a bit of optimism returning to her eyes. "Turlough was puzzled. Said they'd been that way ever since they returned from the flight deck." River paused, her eyes narrowed. "I had the distinct feeling the Old Girl was trying to tell me something."

So the TARDIS already had her defenses up. "Interesting." he murmured. "It would seem that the one thing that Turlough and Haven have going for them is an ally in the TARDIS."

"And the two things that Mercer has going for her are the element of surprise and the fact that she's evil incarnate." Young mumbled.

River raised her eyebrows. "Glad you're looking on the bright side." she remarked with a chuckle.

The Doctor sighed. "So we somehow have to locate- and find a way to reach- a time capsule that could be anywhere in time and space." He grinned ironically. "And I thought we had a challenge on our hands."

"Sarcasm doesn't become you Sweetie." River smirked. She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Wait a moment, how exactly did you know that I'd gone to the flight deck of _Aquarius Epta_ earlier?" she asked suddenly. "After I left you in the library and you had to come... rescue me." It must have nearly killed her to have to add that last bit.

The Doctor's eyes widened. "I put a tracking device on your vortex manipulator..." he said slowly as his mind caught up with his words. "If we can somehow get it back, I might just be able to reverse the signal and locate the TARDIS." A grin spread across his face and he rushed forward to grab River by the shoulders in his excitement. "Professor Song, I do believe we've found a solution."

Young and Schultz exchanged a hopeful look.

But River was looking at him in such an unfriendly way that the Doctor dropped his hands from her shoulders.

She held up one finger, and squinted at him in utter disbelief. "Hold on just a moment...You put a _tracking device_ on my vortex manipulator?" Her voice raised in pitch as if she was terribly affronted. "When exactly did you do _that_?"

The Doctor felt a small amount of triumph at her incredulity. He leaned ever so slightly in to her personal space. "Children really shouldn't play with fire." he told her in a low voice.

She looked ready to physically assault him so he stepped away quickly and turned to face the others, clapping his hands together decisively. "Right. We need to get a hold of that vortex manipulator. Any idea where it might be at the moment?" He looked around at all of them.

"I know right where it is _Doctor_." a familiar voice mocked from behind them.

The Time Lord rolled his eyes and turned to face the newcomer.

Porter. Standing between them and the doorway leading to the main level. Armed as ever, weapon pointed right at the Doctor.

Schultz and River immediately turned and trained their weapons on the unstable scientist.

"Not another step." River warned. "You already have two strikes against you. One for stunning me, two for tying me to that bloody chair."

It seemed to take Porter a moment to notice that one of his own men was pointing a gun at him.

"Schultz." he spat, meeting the Guardian's eye briefly. "I'd say I was surprised but you've been a pain in my ass for decades. You never had the stomach for this kind of work."

The Guardian's mouth twitched but the resolve in his eyes never wavered.

Porter's eyes flicked over to Young. "Et tu Captain?" Porter quipped with a smirk.

Much to the Doctor's shock, Young immediately came forward, hands high in the air. "Not a chance." he told Porter. "That woman abducted me right out of the cockpit." His turned and gave River a fairly convincing look of utter contempt. "After _shooting me_ earlier of course."

"Oh for goodness sake. It was set to _stun_." River pointed out in annoyance, as if not for the first time.

The Doctor had no idea where Captain Young's loyalties were but since River wasn't disputing the so-called abduction, he chose to follow suit.

Porter motioned with his gun for Young to come stand near him. "Oh Captain, my Captain." he chuckled, looking triumphant. Young scrambled over, looking back at the others with an unreadable expression.

The Doctor cleared his throat. "Porter, I've helped you. I've made it so your base is secure from those androids. Now we need to help the passengers and find my friends."

Porter laughed cheerfully. "Oh. You mean the friends who were so hospitable to Officer Mercer earlier?"

The Doctor just managed not to react to that remark. Only just.

Porter nodded, looking pleased with himself. "Oh yes. I made the connection. And if I know Anaïs, she will use them for what they know and dispose of them efficiently." His eyes positively sparkled at the prospect. "I have a hunch that magical blue box of yours will be property of Carr enterprises in no time at all."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "A _hunch_? Aren't you in radio contact with your good friend Officer Mercer?"

Porter shrugged. "She must be having transmission difficulties. Haven't heard back since we've arrived."

 _Transmission difficulties._ The words gave the Doctor hope.

"Porter, just lower your weapon." River recommended, sounding bored. "There's nothing for you to gain here. We've two guns trained on you. You go your way, and we'll go ours."

To the astonishment of everyone, he did lower his weapon, but raised his left arm, leveling his wrist at them.

His wrist that prominently displayed River's vortex manipulator.

River gasped. "You thieving bastard." she snapped.

"Such a nifty little transmat device." Porter mused tapping a few buttons. "I've been trying to figure it out since I took it from you earlier..." He squinted down at the screen.

The Doctor and River shared a look. The technology was far beyond anything Porter had seen. He really had no idea what it was capable of.

"Porter... it's probably not a good idea to go fiddling around with technology you don't understand." the Doctor warned, glancing nervously at the man's wrist.

Porter looked up at the Doctor, smiling at him like he meant it. "Not to worry Doctor. I'm more clever than you give me credit for. It's how I was able to sneak up on you down here, after all. I've discovered how to move around anywhere in this compound." And then he raised his gun and shot Schultz.

There was a moment of frozen shock during which Porter clutched Young's shoulder and pressed the actuate button on the vortex manipulator.

Both men vanished with an electric _zap._

* * *

 _Cloister Room, TARDIS_

"So explain to me again what exactly this place is and what we're doing in here." Haven whispered as Turlough led her by the hand down a sweeping stone staircase into an ivy covered cathedral of a room.

"This is the Cloister Room." he whispered back. "The main power source for the TARDIS. The Doctor once told me that repairs and adjustments could be made throughout the ship from this room."

"Now we just have to hope that Mercer doesn't find us here." Haven grumbled. "That lying slag _must have_ drugged us."

Turlough stopped and turned to look at her when they reached the bottom of the stairs. "Well I can't remember a thing about her... and what makes you so certain that she'd hang around anyway?"

Haven shrugged. "A very strong hunch." she admitted.

Turlough sighed. "Unfortunately, I am having the same very strong hunch." He scratched his head and nodded toward one of the stone columns nearby. "There's a control mechanism right there. Let's go."

They headed to the column and Turlough flipped a small toggle switch which caused the column to split in half vertically, opening to reveal a computer inside. Haven noted that it was a simple active matrix display with a touch screen input. She would have expected something more alien and complex.

"You still haven't explained what you're trying to do here." Haven reminded him, leaning closely over his shoulder to watch what he was up to.

He sighed and tapped the screen. "I figured it'd be safest to avoid the control room since it's likely what the good Officer is interested in." He explained, selecting from a list of applications. "This seemed like the safest place to come to figure out where she is."

He opened a program and initiated a scan. Very basic and user friendly. A progress bar appeared on screen with the word _scanning_ beneath it.

"Lifeform detection program." Turlough explained. "This should tell us if a hostile entity is on board. And where to find them."

 _Hostile entity on board_.

Haven felt a rush of self-directed anger at those words. She had naively allowed some maniac into the Doctor's ship, into his home and now they were in terrible trouble as a result.

The progress bar concluded and the screen displayed a diagram that mapped out the configuration of the TARDIS.

Turlough sighed with relief. "All console rooms clear."

" _All_ console rooms?" Haven asked incredulously.

" _There_!" Turlough suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the red blinking dot in one of the tiny boxes on the diagram. "In the Doctor's laboratory."

He'd no sooner spoken when the whole room was filled with the low, ominous sound of a bell ringing.

 _Bong._

Adrenaline shot through her system as she and Turlough exchanged an anxious look.

"The Cloister Bell." he whispered. "The TARDIS is warning us we're in danger."

"This is very bad." she groaned. "What the hell do we do? Is there a weapon somewhere we can use? Because I'm quite sure that bitch is armed."

 _Bong._

Turlough grew thoughtful. "I recently helped the Doctor install a software patch... a sort of update to this older model TARDIS. I remember there being several new security protocols included, but obviously the Doctor never bothered to set up any of the automatic countermeasures."

"Well what are you waiting for?" Haven hissed. "Call up the security program."

Realization seemed to dawn on Turlough and he closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "But of course the TARDIS will only allow an _operator_ to access security functions." He put his face in his hands and made a sound of frustration.

Haven's brows drew together and she stood up a little straighter. "Move." she instructed calmly.

He looked back at her like she'd lost her mind. "You think you can just _hack_ a _TARDIS_?" He asked her in disbelief. "This is far more complex than the Aquarius Epta database."

She set her jaw and narrowed her eyes. "You think I can't?" she challenged.

A smile twitched at the corners of his mouth and his eyes shined with amusement. "Do your worst." He moved away with his hands in the air, shaking his head.

Haven took his place in front of the screen and was quickly able to access the command line interface. She made a face of approval. A fairly intuitive system. She squinted at the screen and chewed at her lip as her fingers flew over the touchscreen's keyboard.

It took her less than a minute to access the Security Protocols interface.

Turlough made a noise somewhere between disgust and amazement. "Unbelievable." he muttered, crossing his arms, sounding more butt-hurt than appreciative.

Haven allowed herself a small smile. _Sorry about your ego_ , she thought to herself as she inspected the settings.

After a moment, she pointed at the screen. "Know anything about this Echelon circuit?" she wondered, chewing at her lip once more.

Fortunately Turlough had gotten over himself and was by her side, studying the interface. After a moment he shrugged. "I say try it. We'll never know if we don't try."

She blew out a breath. "Here goes." she mumbled, activating the Echelon circuit.

The last thing she expected was for a life size hologram of the Doctor to materialize immediately to their left.

"Holy hell." she choked, grabbing Turlough by the arm.

"This is Security Protocol Seven One Two." the Holo-Doctor informed them. "The Echelon circuit has been activated."

Turlough and Haven looked at each other wide-eyed.

"This time capsule has detected a hostile entity on board." the hologram continued. "The architectural configuration system has diverted all dimensional junctures leading to control rooms. Please prepare for departure."

" _Departure_!?" Turlough and Haven shouted in unison.

The familiar sound of the TARDIS engines dematerializing echoed throughout the stone chamber, drowning out the menacing tone of the Cloister Bell.


	22. Chapter 22

_Basement, Aquarius Epta Mining Compound_

River blinked, her mind belatedly processing what had just taken place.

It had all happened so quickly, in an almost cartoon fashion. She didn't even have time to fire off a round.

One moment, Porter had been taunting them with the vortex manipulator, the next he'd shot Leigh Schultz and teleported away, taking Captain Young with him.

And much to River's astonishment, Schultz was gone too.

"Doctor..." she breathed, stepping toward where the Guardian had been standing only seconds before. "He's vanished." She looked at him in disbelief. "He's vanished just like the others."

The Doctor didn't look surprised. He looked apoplectic. And he didn't reply. He stood rooted to the spot, hands in his pockets, seething.

She hated it when he got like this. One had to tread ever so carefully.

River sighed and moved a bit closer to him. "Doctor," She glanced around nervously, suddenly feeling very exposed here. "We should probably find someplace else to be." she suggested.

The Doctor nodded, still stone faced and beckoned for her to follow him. They made their way out of the storage room into the larger, slightly better lit area of the basement near the staircase. But the Doctor bypassed the stairs and headed through a door that River had yet to even notice.

As soon as River passed through the door into the pitch black room, he deadbolted it behind them and flipped a switch.

It was a large executive style office with an ornate desk, a luxurious looking chair and all the typical office paraphernalia. The place had that same abandoned feel that the rest of the compound had. It had obviously been prepared all those years ago to sit empty until the ship arrived.

River turned to face the Doctor, wondering if he was ready to talk or still in brooding mode. "What's happened to Schultz? Is it the same as with the androids' weapons?"

Much to her surprise, he responded, his voice tight, his eyes blazing. "Very probably. Schultz had just been telling me that the fine folks from Carr Enterprises had provided them with plenty of Giannesite to put to use."

River narrowed her eyes. "You mean for their weapons? They've weaponized the Giannesite the same way the androids have?"

A humorless smile appeared on the Doctor's face. "Weapons... pharmaceuticals..."

"What are you talking about?" she demanded. "What sort of pharmaceuticals?" But she had a feeling she already knew.

The Doctor leaned against the wall and studied her. "Tell me Professor Song. Notice anything unusual about the crew and the Coordinators and the Guardians of _Aquarius Epta_."

River nodded grimly. "If you are referring to their impressively youthful features, yes, I had noticed." She squinted. "So how does that work then? How is that it took me so long to notice? I'm not entirely sure Haven or Cadence have even noticed. After all these years..."

The Doctor shrugged. "Obviously some type of perception filter. I'm not entirely sure of the source yet. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around a substance that can both make humans disappear yet also make them live forever." He looked bewildered at the thought.

"You still don't think the energy blast is fatal." River guessed.

He sighed and stood up a bit taller, adjusted his coat. "No, I do not." he confirmed. "But I still don't know _what_ it is or what it does."

River shook her head, far past discouraged. "Doctor, I'm not sure what our next move is here." She looked at him hopelessly. "There's no telling where Porter's gone with that vortex manipulator. I don't see how we'll ever get back to the TARDIS."

Her last conversation with Haven echoed in her mind. All the trouble she'd gone to, convincing Haven to stay locked safely in the TARDIS. She had no idea she was actually putting her in harm's way. She felt absolutely terrible and what was worse, there was nothing she could do about it right now.

The Doctor had been silent, apparently watching her during her internal meltdown.

"Professor Song." he said, interrupting her train of thought.

She quickly brought her eyes back into focus and blinked up at him.

The rage had left his eyes but an intensity remained. A determination. "I'm not entirely sure how well you know me." he told her. "I don't know for how long, I don't know how you met me. I don't even know whether we're friends or enemies." He took a step toward her and took one of her hands between his in a sweet, comforting fashion. "But I can promise you this: I don't let people like Lawrence Porter III or Anaïs Mercer win. And I never give up. Not ever."

She felt warmth spread through her body as his blue eyes burned into hers and he squeezed her hand.

She cleared her throat, struggling to appear unfazed, despite the fact that she wanted to crawl inside him in this moment and hide away. "I already know that about you." she assured him, a half smile on her face. "I've always found it sort of annoying actually."

The Doctor broke in to a real smile at last. He sighed. "You are quite a lot of work." He told her, studying her curiously. "Anyone ever tell you that?"

River shrugged, looking down at their intertwined fingers. "They never really stop." she replied flippantly.

She felt a twinge of disappointment when he straightened up, removed his hand from hers and said. "Right. It would seem the best thing we can do at the moment is go and check on those passengers. At least offer some reassurance that someone is looking out for them until we can formulate a real plan."

River nodded her agreement. It was the next logical step since they were currently powerless over the TARDIS situation. "I don't suppose you have an alternative to _walking_ all the way back to Aquarius Epta?"

The Doctor grinned and proffered a set of keys. "How does a ride in a Rover sound to you?"

She snatched them out of his hand before he even saw it coming. "Only if I'm driving." she announced, already headed for the door.

The Doctor sighed. " _Quite_ a lot of work." he muttered, following.

Just as she was about to exit the room, she turned back and regarded him seriously. She knew that in her future, he wouldn't remember any of this had happened. But she felt she needed to tell him anyway.

"I know you better than anyone." she offered quietly.

He blinked in surprise at this disclosure.

She continued. "And I've known you my whole life." She smiled, thinking of Amy and Rory. "My parents introduced us. And we are most _definitely_ much more than friends." She raised her eyebrows at him, turned and left the room before he had a chance to reply.

* * *

The Doctor led the way to the parking garage in silent shock. What River had just suggested... Was it _true_? Would one of his future selves be in a _romantic_ _relationship_ with this woman?

There was so much turmoil in his mind that he seemed to arrive at the Rover on autopilot.

As she'd demanded, River got behind the wheel. He climbed in beside her, careful not to meet her eyes. This revelation was troubling him terribly and he really wasn't sure why.

In his peripheral vision, he saw that she was appraising him as she buckled her seatbelt. "Doctor...Have I broken you?" she joked with a grin.

He looked over at her in what he hoped was a casual way. "What makes you say that?"

"Something _must_ be wrong for you to have been speechless this whole time." she teased, her eyes sparkling as she started up the Rover.

He cleared his throat and buckled up. "Yes, well. I'm only considering our options." He rushed to change the subject. "This Rover is a bit smaller than the one I rode here in." he commented, looking around.

River sighed. "I take it you got the key from Schultz."

The Doctor felt another rush of anger at the mention of the Guardian. In the end, Leigh had only wanted to do right by the passengers.

He'd told the Doctor that he had stood by helplessly all those years, witnessing appalling things. Things he had been too afraid to do anything about. He knew the punishment for speaking out against any aspect of the project and he had just been too afraid.

But not today. Today Schultz had been brave. He'd taken a stand in protecting the passengers. It may well have been his last act, but Leigh Schultz had finally earned the title _Guardian of Protection._

The storm had finally dissipated. There was no more snow falling from above. Now it just drifted around, low to the ground like smoke in the darkness.

They were both lost in their own thoughts as they neared the ship. After a moment, he found his eyes drawn to her, squinting at the windscreen as she drove. Her curly hair was pulled back into a pony tail, a few loose strands framing her lovely face.

And she _was_ lovely. Just because he kept his thoughts about such things to himself, didn't mean he didn't notice such things. She was, as Turlough had stated, quite a beautiful woman.

He felt that edgy sensation again in the pit of his stomach. He literally didn't realize he was going to speak until he did. "Is it serious?" he blurted.

He blinked in disbelief. _Now why had he said that?_ He briefly wondered if he might survive a jump from the moving Rover just so he could escape the situation.

If River was surprised by the question, she did a good job of hiding it. She chuckled. "That depends on your definition of _serious_." she flirted, expertly shifting gears as they rounded the bend.

It took a great deal of will to hold back the follow-up questions that sprang immediately to his mind. But in that moment he discovered the irrational, ridiculous thing that was troubling him.

He was jealous of _himself_. He was actually angry that another version of him had met her before _he_ did.

Perhaps after all this was over, he'd take a little trip to Vienna in the 1890's and see his old friend Sigmund. Because frankly, _this_ sort of thing seemed right up his alley.

There was no one in sight when River pulled on to the vehicle entrance ramp of the large spacecraft. It was pitch black outside, the wind howling through the nearby canyon like the distant wail of a suffering creature. The Doctor squinted out into the darkness as they rode the vehicle lift up into the belly of _Aquarius Epta,_ his eyes scanning for movement. There was only snow and the perpetual night.

They climbed out of the Rover into the otherwise empty vehicle storage bay. The room was illuminated with zitrellis microlucent lamps. They bathed the large empty room in a sickly green.

"Doctor." River whispered as they waited for the lift to the passenger deck. "I'm getting that feeling again."

He looked over at her and caught the look in her eyes. Her face was awash in the green glow and her expression was somewhere between nervous and confused.

The Doctor didn't have to ask what she meant by _that feeling_ because he felt it too- had felt it earlier when the androids had attacked the flight deck and before that in the mine. It was an uncanny sort of stillness. A quiet that went beyond mere sound waves.

He met her eyes and merely nodded his understanding.

There was a soft _ding_ as the lift doors slid open. Neither of them spoke as they boarded the tiny elevator, though he noticed that River had unholstered her weapon and was checking the power pack on it.

They hadn't quite reached the passenger deck when they heard someone hammering on the doors above. When they slid open, a terrified looking Guardian of Protection was waiting just on the other side and practically bowled them over in his haste to board the elevator. The Doctor recognized him as the Guardian whose foot Cadence had run over with her janitor's cart. Russell.

Whether River recognized him or not, she did not say. Instead, she pointed her plasma gun at his face. "Slow it down pretty boy." she warned.

But Russell didn't seem to hear or see her. He grabbed River by the shoulder roughly. "We need to get out of here!" he shouted, his eyes wide with horror. "Them fuckin things are all over the ship. They've killed every one on board... shot my whole crew." He blinked like he still couldn't believe it.

The Doctor and River exchanged a look of horror. "They did come back." River breathed. "They wiped out the flight crew first, then came back for the passengers."

"Do you mean to say that everyone on the ship is _gone_?" the Doctor asked, barely managing to conceal his frustration. "That the androids have gone through and systematically shot all the passengers?"

Russell nodded and leaned back against the wall, out of breath, as the lift doors slid shut. "All of em. I'm the only one left.

* * *

 _Doctor's Laboratory, TARDIS_

 _Anaïs Mercer regained consciousness on the laboratory floor to the sound of some sort of bell toning again and again._

 _Bong._

 _She lifted her head, feeling disorientated and slightly woozy. What was she doing on the floor? The persistent and ominous toning of the bell interrupted her train of thought._

 _Bong._

 _Was it some sort of warning system? Had she been detected on board?_

 _She shook her head, trying to regain her faculties. What had happened?_

 _She had been biding her time, waiting for the right moment to make herself known. She had almost revealed herself once, only to find that River Song, along with Captain no nuts Young were on board. She had retreated before she could be seen and stayed hidden in the laboratory._

 _Turlough and Haven would be much easier to handle alone. It was clear there was some sort of intimate relationship there. She need only threaten one to get compliance from both._

 _Anaïs_ _sat up, looking around the room. The last thing she remembered was that Porter had been trying to reach her by radio. She glanced down at the speaker mic still clipped to the lapel of her uniform shirt, wondering how long she may have been unconscious._

 _She thumbed the push-to-talk button. "Mercer to Porter..." she began, noting that there was no reverbration on the transmission. There was also no static. She narrowed her eyes and tried switching the channels. Nothing. She tried turning it off and then back on. Nothing. No beep. No feedback. Nothing. Her radio seemed to be dead._

 _She climbed to her feet a bit unsteadily, her brow furrowed. How the hell had she fallen asleep? What had been done to her?_

 _As if to answer, a life sized hologram of a man materialized nearby and seemed to be looking directly at her. She blinked._

 _He wasn't anyone she recognized. Blonde hair. Strange clothing. Perhaps thirty and rather attractive._

 _"This is Security Protocol Seven One Two." the hologram announced in a stern tone. "The Echelon Circuit has been activated."_

 _Mercer scrunched up her face. "And just what the hell is an Echelon Circuit?" she demanded of the artificial man, reaching for her weapon out of habit._

 _"You are a hostile entity and your presence aboard this time capsule has been discovered. You will not be permitted to cause any harm. A wave distortion beam has been deployed to disable any communication devices or weapons on your person. The architectural configuration system has diverted all dimensional junctures leading to control rooms. Prepare for departure."_

 _And just like that, the hologram was gone._

 _Mercer stood blinking, trying to understand what she'd just heard._

 _A wave distortion beam? Would certainly have been capable of rendering her unconscious and knocking out her radio. She looked down at her energy weapon skeptically. Could her gun really have been disabled in such a fashion?_

 _She set her jaw angrily and aimed at a microscope sitting on the counter across the room. She fired and... nothing. Her weapon was useless._

 _"GODDAMMIT!" she shrieked._

 _She felt rage overtake her as she threw the gun down and retrieved her knife from her utility belt._

 _"You will not be permitted to cause any harm." the prissy voice of the hologram had informed her._

 _She reached for the door handle, eyes narrowed._

 _"We'll just have to see about that." she hissed._

* * *

 _Cloister Room, TARDIS_

The Holo-Doctor abruptly vanished and Haven turned to Turlough in a panic. "Where the hell is it taking us? And what'd he mean by dimensional whatsits being _diverted_?"

Turlough looked about as clueless as she felt. "I have no idea where she's taking us." He was looking all around the room, his brow furrowed. "As to your second question, at a guess, I'd say it's a security measure to keep the hostile lifeform away from the controls. Similar to what happened when River removed the conceptual geometer."

Haven thought back to when they kept being spilled back into the corridor each time they entered the console room.

She shook her head. "That's just great. How the hell do we get out of here then?" she demanded, panic taking hold.

Turlough didn't reply. Instead he turned his attention back to the computer, tapping at the screen and examining the information on display, muttering to himself.

Haven exhaled in exasperation and began to pace the stone room. "Ok... let me just see if I have this right. There is some maniac TARDIS jacker on the loose, likely armed and definitely a sociopath." She took a breath. "And here we are trapped in a fucking funhouse maze with no way to reach the exit. On top of all that good news, we have no idea where in time and space the TARDIS is taking us. Have I left anything out?"

Turlough turned to look at her, seeming much calmer than he should under the circumstances (at least in Haven's estimation). "Well surely the TARDIS is watching out for us. She's a sentient being. She knows we're in danger and that we're the Doctor's friends."

Haven laughed humorlessly. "So you're telling me not to worry because the _time machine_ will take care of me?"

Turlough's face grew serious and he walked over and put his arms around her. "No, of course not. I'm telling you not to worry because _I'll_ take care of you. I won't let anything bad happen to you." He leaned his head forward so their foreheads touched. "Do you trust me?"

Haven closed her eyes and just enjoyed the feeling of his arms around her for a moment. He was like some sort of gift she'd been given by mistake. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and finally opened her eyes. His looked concerned. "Yes." she whispered. "I trust you."

He smiled. "Alright then." He kissed her on the forehead gently, then released her. "Let me see what else we might be able to find out on this computer."


	23. Chapter 23

_Porter's Laboratory, Aquarius Epta_

"And just what the hell am I expected to do without a gun?" Russell the Guardian whined and slumped in his chair.

River sighed and kept her own gun trained on the arrogant manbaby. "I recommend sitting still and shutting up." she suggested impatiently. "Your gun may hold the answer we've been looking for." she explained for the third time and nodded toward where the Doctor was working at a nearby lab bench dismantling the weapon in question.

"So you're just going to _destroy_ it then?" Russell continued, looking stricken at the sight of his prized possession in pieces on the table. "Who the hell do you think you are any way?" he griped at the Doctor who appeared to be so focused on his task that he was oblivious to the Guardian's existence at the moment. He was using a small hand held device to take measurements on different components of the weapon.

River's eyes were hard but a sweet smile formed on her face. "Perhaps you should be _thanking_ the Doctor. If it were up to me, after all, you wouldn't have made it out of that lift alive."

Russell blinked. Then he sat up much straighter in his seat, his eyes blazing. "Those are some pretty big words coming from a _woman_." He said the word as if it were the very worst insult he could think of.

From the lab bench where he was working, the Doctor advised softly and in a sing-song fashion, "I really wouldn't." without looking up from his work.

River's eyes narrowed. "Mr. Russell, I advise you to be very careful." Her tone was calm, but there was steel in her words. "You see, I know a thing or two about this project and the way the people involved have behaved over the course of the journey here. And I know the way that two of my _friends_ were treated by you and your men." Her mouth tightened and something dark flashed behind her eyes momentarily. " _Don't cross me_."

If it were a staring contest they were engaged in, River would have won. Russell broke eye contact after a moment and seemed to find a spot on the floor very interesting. And miracle of miracles, he finally shut his mouth as well.

"Aha." the Doctor suddenly announced.

River glanced in his direction but kept the gun pointed right at her prisoner's head and nearly the full weight of her index finger on the trigger. This time, she wasn't missing her shot. "What have you found Doctor?" she demanded.

He walked over to them, holding up a transparent tube containing a sparkly blue substance. The cylinder was about the length of a hand gun magazine and perhaps 1 1/2 inches in diameter. He agitated it slightly and it made a sound similar to agitating a full salt shaker. "The weapons are loaded with these cylindrical cartridges containing what appears to be granulated Giannesite." he announced.

River frowned. "And what exactly is the weapon's firing mechanism? Does it _heat_ the Giannesite?"

"It's not necessary." The Doctor sounded slightly awe inspired. "It would appear that the simple act of _containing_ the particles produces the energy that the gun utilizes."

He handed the tube to River to examine. To her surprise, she realized the tube was glowing slightly, lit from within. "I've never seen anything quite like it." she admitted, impressed.

She handed it back to him, still keeping an eye on Russell. The Doctor turned the cartridge in his hands thoughtfully. "It actually reminds me quite a lot of how artron energy is produced within the TARDIS's energy capacitor." He held up the device he'd been using to analyze the weapon. "Of course... these readings rule out artron energy entirely."

River studied the display screen on the radiation gauge and realized something unexpected. "Doctor," she said slowly, "those readings are quite literally the _opposite_ of what one would see in the detection of artron radiation.

"The opposite?" he whispered, studying the display himself, brow furrowed. Then his eyes widened. "The _opposite_." he breathed. He tucked the instrument into his pocket and chewed his lip thoughtfully. "I don't think it's our Time Lord DNA that makes us impervious to the energy blast."

River blinked. "You mean...?

He raised his eyebrows. "Think about it. We're time travelers, _infused_ with artron energy." He held his hand in front of his face and turned it around, as if he could see the energy particles. He nodded. "Yes. I do believe the artron energy is acting as an inhibitor."

It made perfect sense. "Perhaps it is." she whispered, intrigued.

He paced a moment in silence, still eyeing the cylinder full of Giannesite granules. When he stopped, he turned back to River and pointed in her direction. "Professor Song... what would you say is the _opposite_ of artron energy?"

River sighed. "Artron energy acts upon time itself." she shrugged. "And the opposite of time would be anti-time..." she trailed off.

The Doctor shook his head, suddenly looking very far away. "Only...anti-time isn't the _opposite_ of time, is it?" he asked himself in a distracted fashion. Instead of elaborating, he began to pace again, like he forgot she was there.

River made a sound of exasperation. "Doctor, what the hell do you mean? _Of course_ anti-time is the opposite of time. The word _anti_ is sort of a dead giveaway."

And then he gasped and turned back toward her, eyes wide with epiphany. "No." he insisted, "Don't you see? It's...well... I mean..." He seemed to struggle to explain himself. At last he blurted, "Anti-time is to time, what hate is to love."

She cocked her head to one side, surprised to find she understood his cryptic analogy. "Hate isn't the opposite of love." she deducted slowly. "Indifference is. The _absence_ of feeling."

The Doctor nodded vigorously. "And anti-time isn't the opposite of time. The _absence_ of time is."

And then all the pieces fell into place for River, just like that. The people who weren't aging, the people vanishing, and of course the lack of effect on the Doctor and herself. "We're dealing with atemporality." she gasped. A statement, not a question.

"I rather think we are." he confirmed, wonder written all over his face.. "Some sort of atemporal energy is at work here. Suspending aging, and taking people out of time entirely."

Russell the Guardian had been on his best behavior during their exchange. Now it seemed the strain of shutting the hell up had become too much for him. "I don't know what sort of nonsense the two of you are on about," he complained. "But it's nothing to do with me. We need to get off this ship before those bastards come back and take us out too." He made as if to stand.

River turned her full attention back to him. "Quiet please. Mummy and Daddy are busy." Then she shoved him none too gently back into the chair.

It was then that Russell made his biggest mistake yet. He decided it would be a good idea to call River the 'c-word'. River froze.

As a red haze descended over her vision, she faintly heard the Doctor sigh and murmur, "oh dear" in a disappointed fashion.

The force behind her pistol whip knocked the Guardian completely out of his chair. He landed, quite unconscious, in a heap on the floor.

River nodded and shoved her gun back into her belt. She was unsurprised to see the disapproval on the Doctor's face.

She shrugged. "We both warned him." she pointed out. "And at least I didn't _kill_ him."

The Doctor rolled his eyes and countered, "Stunning him would have been sufficient and far less violent."

River grinned wickedly. "But then he wouldn't have a lovely bump on his head to remember me by."

* * *

 _Rover interior, Surface of Giannes, 2080 A.D._

The Doctor was driving this time. As he steered them back toward the mine through the dark, River continued to challenge his plan.

"Doctor, do you really think that we can just go _strolling_ into the mine and demand answers?" she scoffed. "What makes you so certain that the androids don't have some other weapon up their sleeves?"

He glanced at her briefly, a charming smile on his face. "Because androids don't wear sleeves." he informed her jovially.

River scowled. "I've already told you... their people are on the planet Felix. _That_ is where we need to go for answers."

"Yes. And who _told_ you that their people are on the planet Felix, hmm?" he asked, shifting gears.

River made a sound of exasperation. "Just because one of the androids provided me with the coordinates of its home planet-in between threatening me and calling me an invader- that certainly does _not_ mean they have all the answers we're looking for. They're machines for gods' sake." She crossed her arms, obviously furious that he wasn't going to follow her advice.

He sighed. "River... in case you've failed to notice, I am currently without a space capsule. _Aquarius Epta_ has been disabled by the androids- and so have all four of its emergency skiffs." He shrugged. "Our only option at the moment is to see what we can learn from them. Who knows, maybe they'll take us to their leader." he smirked.

In his peripheral vision, he saw the daggers she was staring at him. "Doctor, I am telling you _right now_ , this is a mistake. We need to go hunt down Porter, find my vortex manipulator and get back to the TARDIS."

As they rounded the last bend and the mine and compound came into sight, the Doctor was silent, considering her words. There was a small part of him that thought she might be right. Going into the belly of the beast, as it were, _was_ a huge risk.

But then he thought back to the glowing cylinder of crushed blue crystal. Atemporality. The androids were protecting a substance rooted in eternity. Using that substance to remove people from time itself. People like Cadence Barber. His brow furrowed as he tried to wrap his mind around what they were up against.

He glanced back at River who looked ready to spit nails and made up his mind. This went beyond mere curiosity. He had allowed Cadence to place herself in harm's way and he had a duty of care. He was determined to find out what happened to her.

As he pulled up to the mouth of the cave the Doctor exhaled loudly. "River," he announced. "I don't expect you to come along and put yourself in harm's way if you don't think it's the right thing to do." He shut down the engine and held out the Rover's key to her. "Why don't you find someplace safe to go? We can meet back here in one hour and-"

"Would you just _shut up_!?" River interrupted, thoroughly annoyed. The Doctor blinked in surprise at her outburst as she unbuckled herself and ran a hand across her forehead. "Of course I'm coming with you." She grumbled. She checked her weapon and sighed. "This gun is nearly out of power so you better hope the nice guy routine works."

He studied her in silence, as he unbuckled himself from the Rover, trying to figure her out. Finally he said, "River, I don't need a bodyguard or a protector. So don't feel obligated by something, that for me, hasn't even happened yet."

She slowly holstered her gun and then looked up into his eyes. "Whether I like it or not. Whether _you_ like it or not. My place is with you." She smiled the saddest smile he'd ever seen. "For better or for worse." she whispered.

Unlike her gun, the sad smile and her words were fully loaded and they nearly broke his hearts.

 _For better or for worse_.

The Doctor didn't know anything at all about his future or what sort of man he would be when River first met him. But he was certain now that she was in love with that man. And he was further convinced that the future version of him didn't deserve it.

His jaw tightened as he tried to shake off the guilt for things yet to come. "Let's go then." he told her quietly.

Inside the darkened mine, the stillness washed over them both again. And it all made sense now. As Time Lords, the atemporality unsettled them to their core. It felt palpably _wrong_.

River shone her torch all around sparkling blue walls of the cave. "Doctor, I hope you know what you're getting us into." she mumbled.

He thought it best to change the subject. "I do hope our good friend Russell is getting enough air in the boot of the Rover." he commented conversationally.

His words actually got a real smile out of her. "I don't see how a lack of oxygen to _his_ brain would make much difference."

"I suppose he's at least out of harm's way for the time being." he allowed as they turned a corner in the cave and could no longer see the dim light from the entrance at their back.

A familiar metallic _clinking_ sound greeted them up ahead as one of the androids appeared in the torch's light and advanced on them.

"Unlike us." River grumbled, raising her weapon.

"Wait!" the Doctor ordered.

River dropped the gun to her side with a sigh. "And here we go." she muttered.

The android fired and the blast hit the Doctor square in his torso. He didn't flinch though, didn't even blink. Just slowly raised his arms in the universal language of surrender and addressed the android loudly. "Your atemporal energy has no effect on either of us." He announced, taking a step toward the creature. "So I suggest we have a conversation about what's really going on here."

The android stopped its advancing for a moment and began to make an odd series of whirring noises. An electronic babble echoed around the cave as the android struggled to assimilate the new language.

"English." River advised dryly. "Human english. I already know you've got it in you."

And to the Doctor's relief, the android began to speak. "Human english." it croaked robotically.

The Doctor sighed. "Please. Tell us what's happened to everyone you've shot. Where have they gone?" he insisted.

"We are the protectors. We were created for protection." the android reported, seeming to ignore the Doctor's question. "You are other. You come from elsewhere. You have invaded." It raised its energy gun once more.

The Doctor was losing his patience. There must be some way he could get through to these beings. " _Who_ created you for protection? What sort of people are they?" he demanded. "Are they perfectly okay with harming innocent lifeforms?"

The android responded by shooting another beam of energy, this time at River who winced and staggered back a bit, but was otherwise unharmed. From the corner of his eye he saw her nostrils flair as she tapped her fingers on the handle of her weapon at her waist. He hoped she could refrain from blowing the android apart until he got the answers they needed.

The android whirred some more, seemingly unable to process that its gun had no effect on them. Then it simply said, "We were created for protection against the human invaders."

"Well there, you see..." the Doctor exclaimed triumphantly, taking another step forward. " _We_ aren't human at all. We are a race called the Time Lords and we-"

"Time lords." The android interrupted. It's next words came much faster, almost running together. "You are Time Lords you are the from the planet Gallifrey you have unlocked the mysteries of time."

River looked at the Doctor wide-eyed and he felt a chill, uneasy that their reputations apparently preceded them. "Y-y-yes." he stammered in confirmation.

"And you will come with me." the android informed them. And with that, a small panel opened on its metal chest and it reached inside and flipped a hidden switch.

There was a bright flash followed by a searing pain in the Doctor's head. He cried out and staggered against the crystal covered wall. He heard River gasp in pain as well. He was disorientated by the glaring light that now filled the cave and he couldn't see where she'd gone. The doctor stumbled forward, reaching his hands out. "River?" he called and it echoed all around them. Continued to echo as he slumped forward to his knees, dizzy and nauseated.

He could hear her faintly groaning somewhere nearby as the echo of his last word resonated all around them.

 _River... River... River_

* * *

 _Cloister Room, TARDIS_

Haven was beginning to think that activating the Echelon circuit thing may have been a huge mistake. The computer had become completely unresponsive and both she and Turlough had given up searching for answers there.

He leaned against one of the ancient looking stone columns still looking resolute. "There must be some way for us to get off this ship without encountering our stowaway." He scratched his head and shrugged. "Only I'm not entirely sure how this diversion of dimensional junctures works exactly."

Haven sighed. "Well if it's anything like when River sabotaged the TARDIS, anywhere we try to go, we'll be spilled back into one spot in the corridor. And it diverted you to the same spot as the Doctor and me." She peered at him nervously. "It could put us right in her path."

Turlough nodded, chewing on his thumb. "But remember, the Doctor was able to access some sort of master control in one of the roundels in the corridor. It temporarily stabilized the transdimensional circuits so that he was able to reach his intended destination."

Haven stared at him like he'd lost his sense. "You mean you want to risk running into Mercer on the off chance we _might_ be able to redivert the dimensional junctures to the console room?" She scoffed. "It's suicide. We're not even certain it could work with the Echelon circuit activated. And if it _did_ work, it would give her a chance to reach the console room as well."

Turlough raised his eyebrows. "I suppose you could stay here and wait. There's a good chance you'll be perfectly safe here in the cloister room by yourself." He put his hands in his pockets and made as if to head for the stairs.

Haven narrowed her eyes and grabbed his arm to stop him. "No way are you leaving me here alone. This ride has gone bonkers and I want off!" She took a deep breath and mentally steeled herself. "Let's get this over with. I sure hope the TARDIS hasn't landed us in the middle of some alien battlefield."

He slid his hand out of his pocket and grasped her hand firmly, his eyes twinkling. "You do realize I would have never really left you by yourself."

She narrowed her eyes but couldn't help but smile. "Well aren't you a manipulative bastard?" she murmured.

He shrugged humbly as if he'd been paid a great compliment. "It's all the time spent with the Doctor. I learned from the very best."

Haven laughed as they made their way back up the staircase. "I don't suppose the 'very best' happens to have any weapons stashed around."

"Not his style at all." he assured her, then chuckled. "Now River on the other hand..."

Haven snickered. "She would have an impressive arsenal no doubt."

They'd reached the doorway and exchanged a look.

"So what do we do if we run into Mercer?" Haven whispered, trying her best to keep her voice from trembling. Being brave sure wasn't easy.

"You just stay behind me." he insisted. "I'll deal with her."

Haven rolled her eyes as they stepped out into the stark white corridor. "Tell me... your people- the Trions- are they bullet proof by chance?"

"Not in the least." he replied conversationally. "But we do tend to be fiercely protective of those we love."

 _Love._ Haven felt her heart skip a beat _._

He continued as if nothing unusual had taken place. "There's every chance that the TARDIS will keep her separated from us of course. She's a very clever ship."

She glanced up at him in awe as they crept along the corridor hand in hand. He'd definitely said love.

When they reached a door that Haven was certain lead right to the console room, there was the familiar sound of an electrical discharge and they were suddenly in another corridor entirely.

They looked all around warily. There wasn't another soul in sight.

Haven could have sworn this was the very same dim corridor she'd been continually diverted to with the Doctor. And then she spotted something on the floor that confirmed it.

The contents of River's sidepack were spilled on the floor where they'd been left before. She saw the two strange looking shapes that the Doctor had referred to as explosives along with some food rations, a torch and a large folding knife. She quickly knelt and gathered the items back into the bag before slinging it over her shoulder. She kept the knife out and opened it with trembling hands.

Turlough held his hand out for it.

Haven shook her head vigorously. "You see about that master control panel. I'll keep watch." She wielded the knife in an unpractised, clumsy way, but stood her ground purposefully.

Turlough clenched his jaw, looking unamused. "Your people- the Humans- are _they_ bullet proof by chance?"

A big smile lit up her pretty face and she looked him right in the eye. "Nope." she told him. "But we do tend to be fiercely protective of those we love." A grin appeared on his face, seemingly despite himself and she nodded in the direction of the roundel they'd watched the Doctor remove. "Go on then." she encouraged.


	24. Chapter 24

_**A/N: Adult content warning. Things are said, tables are turned, and then all hell breaks loose. River Song is involved, what else did you expect? :) - Ruinous79**_

* * *

The Doctor had regained consciousness first. When her eyes finally fluttered open, she found him leaning over her, looking concerned.

"Where the hell _are_ we?" River's voice sounded raspy, as if she hadn't spoken for weeks. She cleared her throat and sat up, taking in their surroundings. They were in an ancient looking stone chamber with a single iron door with bars on the window.

The Doctor helped her to her feet. "It would seem we're in some sort of cell. Being held prisoner." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and glanced around curiously. Not seeming the least bit sorry or regretful that he'd put them in this situation.

River's eyes narrowed. She should have stunned his naive arse when she had the chance back in the Rover. She felt anger boiling up inside. Anger at him and anger at herself for just going along with him, against her instincts.

The Doctor continued when she didn't respond. "At a guess, I'd say our android friend has teleported us here somehow." He licked the tip of his index finger and held it up as if testing the air. "Time feels normal enough. So we haven't been taken _out_ of time. We're just... not where we were..." He trailed off thoughtfully, then turned to look at her. "What do _you_ think?" he inquired.

River raised her eyebrows. "What do _I_ think?" her voice was cold. "I think perhaps we should stop _talking_ for the time being and just think in silence." He was lucky they'd taken her gun off her or she might've been tempted to stun him now just to shut him up.

River was absolutely _finished_ with the blonde boy scout. He was the most infuriating person she'd met in her life... in her _lives_. When she got out of this cell, she wanted to get as far away from him as possible and find Haven on her own. If that meant going after Porter by herself, that's just what she would do.

They were in this cell because he'd _refused_ to listen to anything she had to say. Of course, what was new there? The Doctor _always_ knew what was best. She grumbled and shook her head. She seated herself on the edge of a cot in the dimly lit cell and could see that he was doing his tiresome pacing _thing_ in her peripheral vision.

From time to time he would think out loud but she mostly managed to block it out.

After several minutes had passed in glorious silence, the Doctor stopped in front of her, his hands on his hips. "I've been thinking," he began in his uniquely pompous way, "Perhaps we should have waited until we got the TARDIS back to investigate the androids."

That was it.

River stood up and got right in his face. "I'm fairly certain I suggested that _several_ times!" she snapped, completely losing her cool.

The Doctor studied her furious expression like she was a particularly fascinating specimen. "You're angry with me." he stated. "Interesting."

She laughed in disbelief. "Astute observation."

He squinted at her. " _I'm_ fairly certain that I suggested you stay behind. It was _your_ decision to come along. Nobody put you in this situation but yourself."

Then River pushed him, hard. "Would you just _shut_ up?" she shouted. She was in no mood for his emotionless logic.

He stumbled backwards from the force of her shove and put his hands up defensively. "There's no need to get violent about it." He sounded like she'd hurt his feelings. River was long past caring.

"Oh yes, ever the pacifist." she taunted. "Mister self-righteous do-gooder. Wouldn't want to tarnish that Mister Nice Guy image. This version of you is _pathetic_!"

For the first time, anger flashed in the Doctor's eyes. "Wait just a moment. I hardly see how being nonviolent and wanting to do the right thing makes me pathetic."

River rolled her eyes. "But is it really out of altruism or is it because you're just weak and afraid?" She turned to walk away, growing tired of the argument. Tired of _him_.

The Doctor grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around, now _definitely_ pissed off. "And who are _you_ to pass judgment on me, hmm? Seems to me you always act before thinking. You let your emotions get the better of you and act out of animosity or revenge rather than the greater good. Ever stop to consider that maybe it takes more courage to find a different way? Ever stop to think that maybe it's _you_ who's afraid?" He crossed his arms indignantly.

She drew herself up to full height. "No. Because I'm not afraid of _anything_." she assured him. " _You_ , on the other hand are _so_ damn apprehensive, it's ridiculous." She crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows. "That first night in the library? You were _terrified_ of me. You can't even deal with a woman _touching_ you for pity's sake." River shook her head and scoffed. "And your sad little attempt to get information out of me telepathically? So far out of your depth it was laughable. The great hero, the mighty Time Lord, turns to a stammering mess at even the prospect of lust."

His eyes widened in shock and he blushed furiously when she finished unloading on him. It seemed he had no words. Instead he exhaled loudly and turned his back on her.

River blinked, knowing she had gone _way_ too far. She always had to go and get cruel, knowing he'd never stoop that low.

After a moment, she sighed. "Doctor... I-"

He turned back suddenly, interrupting her apology. "You think that means I'm _afraid_ of you?" he asked, squinting at her curiously, as if he really wanted to know.

River cleared her throat and began to do a little damage control backpedaling. "No, of course I don't really think _that_. I was just angry."

The Doctor stuffed his hands into his pockets and stared at her, his expression inscrutable. "No, I think you really do _believe_ that I'm somehow _intimidated_ by you." He walked toward her, still watching her face.

She found the Doctor's demeanor strangely off putting. But it was his confrontational proximity that really threw her off. "I was just trying to be mean." she assured him quickly, unconsciously shifting away from him. "I know it's not true."

The Doctor stepped even closer, invading her personal space. "Do you though?" he asked.

River felt a rush of adrenaline and blinked. Was he seriously trying to intimidate _her_ now? "Doctor, I think we just need to sit on opposite ends of the cell and not talk for a bit. Wait until we've both calmed down."

He was standing right in front of her, toe to toe, looking down at her curiously. She was looking back at him, wondering what the hell he was up to now. "Oh but I'm perfectly calm." he told her in a low voice. His hand reached out and she felt a jolt in her abdomen when his fingers touched her arm and gently caressed from her elbow to her wrist before clasping her hand. The gesture was shockingly intimate.

River sighed, trying to ignore the butterflies taking flight in her stomach at his touch. "Doctor, I _know_ what you're trying to do. So just stop it already. You don't have to _prove_ anything to me." She took a step backwards, shaking his hand off.

She saw a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "And what exactly do you think I'm _trying to do_?" he wondered, his brow furrowed.

Her nostrils flared and she closed her eyes for a moment. "You're apparently trying to put me in my place." she answered in a voice she hardly recognized. "And that's fine. You win the argument. I was wrong, okay?" She took another step back.

He glanced down at the space she had put between them, then looked back up, amusement plain on his face. "Where are _you_ off to?" he asked her cheerfully.

She pressed her lips together, getting angry all over again. This was clearly a power play on his part. "Just giving you your space." she said in an overly polite tone and taking another step backwards.

He closed the distance between them once more and casually placed his hands on either side of her torso, looking her directly in the eye as he did so. Ever so slowly, he slid his hands down to her waist, caressing her ribcage, her back and her abdomen along the way before settling on her hips. River felt her hearts nearly leap out of her chest but she tried her damnedest to look unimpressed.

But then he pulled her body in close to his in a rather deliberate way and she audibly gasped at the suggestiveness of the action. She blinked up at him, speechless. He leaned his forehead against hers, a smirk on his handsome face. "Professor Song... you wouldn't- by any chance- be _intimidated_ right now, would you?"

She narrowed her eyes at him and willed away the effect his touch was having on her. "Of course not." she told him, trying to sound amused. Instead she just sounded nervous. _Damn him._

He smiled broadly and allowed his hands to move around her back, resting just above her backside. His voice was casual. "Why don't you tell me what you hoped to achieve in the library the other night." he coaxed, continuing to watch her intently.

River chewed on her lip, annoyed that she was so flustered. "I d-don't really remember now." she stammered. "I'm sure I was just trying to get a reaction out of you."

Now the Doctor leaned in so that his lips were touching her ear. "What sort of reaction?" he whispered, sending chills all the way down her spine. Then he kissed her very softly right behind her ear which sent a rush of heat down to other parts of her anatomy. The bastard was using her best moves _against_ her!

She cleared her throat but her voice was still slightly shaky. "Just... _some_ sort of reaction." she explained vaguely.

He nuzzled into her neck, kissing his way down her throat and back up to the ear once more. "A _positive_ sort of reaction?" he whispered against her ear.

Her hands had been resting on his upper arms, not quite pushing him away but poised to do so. Now she was gripping his arms tightly and leaning into his chest to keep from falling over. Her legs had turned to jelly.

"A very _good_ reaction." she breathed, her resistance fading fast.

He pulled his head back just enough so they were eye to eye once more. " _Still_ think I'm terrified?" he inquired softly, looking incredibly pleased with himself.

"Kindly shut the hell up." she growled, before grabbing him roughly by the face and kissing him like nobody had ever kissed him before.

* * *

Even in the heat of the moment, it wasn't a mystery to the Doctor why River's harsh words had hit their mark so effectively. There was an implied comparison, a direct affront to his ego. Of course he'd always fancied himself above such trivialities. Credit where credit was due: the woman knew all the right buttons to press.

Initially, the Doctor had just intended to turn the tables on her. To do the unexpected and catch her off guard. To prove that she didn't intimidate him and that he wasn't _terrified_ of such physical contact.

Of course, he _was_ absolutely terrified. His acting was impressive though. He sure _sounded_ like he was in control. That is, at least, until River kissed him. Then all that went out the window.

Their previous encounter had been child's play by comparison. In proving his point, he had unintentionally unleashed something quite animalistic in her. She was holding onto his head firmly as she stood on her tip toes and pressed herself against him, kissing him hard enough to bruise his mouth.

Maybe it was the residual spark of heat from their argument. Maybe it was the fact that this time, she definitely wasn't playing around. Whatever the reason, it was like a switch was thrown and he was overcome with the sort of desire that had been dormant in him for centuries. There was a buzzing inside his brain and his entire body was on fire and he began to have _very_ uncharacteristic ideas.

Before he knew what had happened, _he_ became the aggressor. Suddenly he had her pressed up against the iron door of the cell, kissing her vigorously, his hands tangled in her wild curls. The logical part of his brain was calling to him faintly but was drowned out by all that buzzing.

River broke away for a moment. "No more Mr. Nice Guy I guess." she gasped, trying to catch her breath. He didn't say anything. Instead he lifted her off of the ground and somewhat forcefully pressed her back against the wall.

River grinned and wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. " _Hello_ Sweetie." she purred in encouragement. Then she began to kiss him fiercely again. And he reciprocated, propping her against the dirty cell wall with her wrapped around him tightly. All thoughts of escape and the well-being of his other companions had disappeared along with his inhibitions.

The only coherent thoughts he had when she hopped down and began to undress herself were _Nothing good can come of this_ and _This person is probably not the greatest influence on me._

When she was completely nude, she turned her back on him and strolled over to the cot in the corner. She lowered herself onto it like she forgot he was even there, then lay on her side, her head propped up on one hand, gazing off in the other direction and biting her lip seductively.

He stood watching, certain that it would be best if he just stayed put. It was good that she had put this distance between them, he reasoned dizzily. If he stayed right where he was, maybe he'd snap out of it.

And the next thing he knew, he was laying on top of her, almost completely undressed himself. _Now how had that happened?_ It was remarkable really. The woman was like a self contained transmat device.

The rational side of him knew this was inappropriate and foolish behavior and that he should stop. ( _River divested him of his shirt and wrapped her legs around him, his briefs now the only barrier between them_.)

But somehow, she had also tapped into a much more animalistic version of himself. ( _His mouth was all over her chest, his hands all over her body_.)

A version of himself he wasn't sure he liked all that well. ( _As with all things, he was a fast learner and River moaned loudly since she was not shy about making things very clear_.)

When she whispered in his ear what she wanted him to do next, the Doctor knew he could never go that far and resolved to put a stop to all of it. ( _He'd just removed his pants and started to proceed with the requested action when-_ )

 _KA-BOOM._

Tiny bits of rock peppered them and the world was filled with black smoke. The Doctor sat up blinking, his ears ringing. He briefly considered the possibility that they'd caused the explosion themselves through sheer friction.

"Are you two alright?" Haven's voice floated out of the smoke followed immediately by Turlough's asking, "Is anyone hurt?"

It took a bit longer than it should have to catch up to his brain that they were being broken out of the cell and that Turlough and Haven had apparently used some type of explosive device to put a hole through the wall.

River made a sound of disappointment. The Doctor scrambled to collect his clothes before the smoke could clear. "Uh... yes yes. Just fine here. Not at all injured." River was making a half-hearted effort to get dressed herself, clearly annoyed with the interruption.

He had just managed to get his trousers back on when the smoke cleared enough to where he could see Turlough squinting at him curiously.

"Doctor... are you...not wearing a _shirt_?" Turlough asked, bewildered.

Haven gasped. "Oh _shit."_ she laughed in embarrassed comprehension, then grabbed Turlough by the arm and yanked. "Uh... Turlough it appears we've interrupted _something_. Let's give them just a second to get themselves... sorted."

To which Turlough replied with peals of hysterical laughter but he went ahead along with her suggestion and exited stage right.

The Doctor closed his eyes and sighed. Wouldn't be hearing the end of _this one_ anytime soon.

* * *

There wasn't time for much discussion once they'd freed River and the Doctor. The explosion had been anything but inconspicuous and the TARDIS was parked some distance away.

As the four of them made their way swiftly through a maintenance tunnel away from the prison cell, Haven began to panic because they hadn't taken the time to even address what had brought the TARDIS here. The Doctor needed to know about the hijacker and the threat she posed. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore and put on the brakes, whispering fiercely, "Everyone, _stop_!"

Turlough met her eyes in the strange amber light of the tunnel and softly reiterated. "Yes. Let's stop for just a moment."

River and the Doctor had halted their forward progress and were looking back in confusion.

"There's no time for this." the Doctor hissed. "We've no idea who might be looking for us and what danger they might pose."

Haven cleared her throat. "We need to tell you something." she insisted, albeit reluctantly.

Turlough chimed in. "It's a critical matter Doctor."

"Is this about Officer Mercer being on the TARDIS?" the Doctor asked softly.

"How'd you know about that?" Haven gasped, guilt clutching at her heart.

River interrupted the exchange. "Long story short, the Doctor intercepted a radio call in which Mercer told Porter that she was on board the TARDIS and had drugged the two of you." Now she reached over and grabbed Haven by the shoulders, her voice intense. "Quickly. How did you get away? How did you find us here and where is that woman now?"

Haven sighed and whispered quickly. "We figured out she was on board so I hacked the TARDIS security system and activated the Echelon circuit which somehow brought us to this exact place. The dimensional junctures were all out of whack until Turlough stabilized them long enough for us to reach the exit." She took a breath. "Luckily we never ran into Mercer."

"So she's here." the Doctor deducted. "Either still on the TARDIS or somewhere nearby."

"Wherever _here_ is." Turlough mumbled.

"So what do we do?" Haven worried. "We can't just board the TARDIS without knowing. How the hell are we going to escape?"

River affectionately tucked a strand of hair behind Haven's ear. "Wherever she is, we'll deal with her." River assured her confidently. Haven then saw something dangerous glitter in River's eyes. Her tone turned to steel. "She's done herself one favor for sure. She didn't make the mistake of laying a finger on you."

"I wasn't about to let that happen." Turlough interjected, sounding upset at the mere thought.

"Of course you weren't." the Doctor agreed in a calming tone. "It sounds like the two of you handled yourselves brilliantly." He then addressed Haven directly, his voice still soft but firm. "And nobody is blaming either of you for helping someone who was in danger. That was the right thing to do."

His kind words didn't exactly make Haven feel blameless, but they definitely went a long way to alleviate some of the self-directed anger the situation had caused.

The way River looked at the Doctor after his compassionate reassurance wasn't lost on Haven. She saw admiration, and an unmistakable raw devotion. _She loves him._ Haven realized, shocked at the revelation. The physical chemistry between them made enough sense. But _love_? The two of them couldn't have been more different.

"Alright Doctor. What's our move here?" Turlough wanted to know. "Do we still head for the TARDIS?"

"Definitely." the Doctor stated. "If she's still on board, she'll be at a disadvantage."

They began to move forward through the cramped, eerily lit tunnel again.

"So how exactly did you find us in the cell?" the Doctor asked in a low voice before they'd gotten very much further.

Haven and Turlough exchanged a look and both fought to keep from laughing out loud.

Haven shrugged. "We heard your... argument from the other side of the wall." she explained, just managing to maintain a straight face.

From his expression, it was pretty clear that the Doctor regretted having asked. "Y-y-yes, of course you did." he stammered. "Well done." He began to walk even faster.

Turlough was walking right beside Haven and he leaned in and murmured. "Who do you suppose won _that_ argument?"


	25. Chapter 25

It was River who noticed they were being followed. She was trailing behind the group now after growing bored of the awkward silence and uncomfortable glances she was getting walking up front with the Doctor.

River wasn't especially interested in witnessing firsthand a grown man unravel over a crisis of conscious. She wasn't unconfident enough to be offended by his ambivalence toward her. She was mostly just annoyed.

So she'd offered to take up the rear, ostensibly as a precautionary measure. Between considering the danger of their situation and inwardly rolling her eyes at the Doctor's uneasy reaction to her proximity, her mind was preoccupied when she first started to feel the hairs at the back of her neck standing on end.

River turned to look behind them in the eerie amber light of the maintenance shaft. Off in the distance, she could hear water dripping. What she couldn't hear was the familiar metallic clanking sound of androids in pursuit. She stood stock still, peering along the curve of the tunnel.

But she saw nothing. Heard nothing.

She fell back in step with them, still glancing behind from time to time. "Perhaps we should move a bit faster." she whispered to the three in front of her. They complied and she increased her own pace as well.

They were approaching a hard turn up ahead and the tunnel was growing noticeably darker as they progressed. The Doctor sounded uncertain.

"Turlough... are you quite sure that _this_ will take us back to the TARDIS?" he asked over his shoulder, slowing once more.

"Positive." Haven asserted before Turlough could even answer. "This was the same way we came and found your cell."

River frowned at her words, glancing back for the umpteenth time.

 _Something is wrong_.

It was more than paranoia or a nervous suspicion. She could feel it in her bones. Her hearts rate increased and she felt adrenaline flood her system.

"Doctor..." she whispered urgently. "I think we've made a mistake."

They had reached the turn and the Doctor didn't seem to hear her as he disappeared around the corner but Turlough looked back at her, a bit defensive. "I assure you. This is the right direction." he insisted.

Before she could reply, the Doctor's voice came from out of her sight line, sounding slightly incredulous, "Pitch black ahead. I wonder what's happened to the light here?"

Turlough and Haven exchanged a look. "This whole tunnel was well lit when we came through earlier." Haven murmured nervously. She reached into her pocket and fished out a torch, handing it forward to the Doctor as the rest of them turned the corner.

The Doctor hadn't been exaggerating. This part of the tunnel went from dim to inky blackness rather quickly.

The apprehension River had been experiencing was now devolving into dread. This wasn't right. They should turn back.

"Doctor..." she called again but this time she was drowned out by Turlough.

"The passage we climbed through is up ahead there on the right." he was saying as they crept through the darkness, guided only by the small flashlight Haven had brought along.

And that was when River actually heard something. Something in the tunnel behind them. It was a faint sound, somewhere between a rustle and a scrape. She turned, arguing with herself once more over whether to back track.

She was angry that she didn't have any sort of weapon on her person. If there was one thing River despised, it was feeling vulnerable. She inclined her head to the right, then to the left, popping her neck.

Decision made, she crept back toward the bend in the tunnel. Behind her, she heard her friends stop and begin to remove the maintenance panel that Turlough and Haven had crawled through earlier.

River inched forward, wishing she at least had the knife she'd taken from Lantieri's pack earlier. She imagined it was in the TARDIS with the rest of her things. She pressed her back to the wall of the tunnel, listening for whatever might be waiting just around the corner.

"This panel's stuck!" Turlough exclaimed suddenly. "It wasn't like this when we left it. It looks as though someone purposely jammed it up!"

She was aware of what was happening with the others, but felt detached from it, so intent was she on discovering if they were truly being pursued. River narrowed her eyes, ignoring the feeling of her hearts in her throat as she stepped around the corner.

She never knew what hit her. The makeshift club cracked down against her head and her limp body fell against the wall before sliding to the floor, making very little sound.

She came to some time later with one hell of a headache and pain shooting through her right shoulder. Her hand immediately went to the spot just right of center where forehead met hairline and came away covered in blood.

Her first reaction to the sight of blood wasn't fear. It was fury. Someone was messing with the absolute wrong person. She sat up, her anger battling with the woozy feeling that washed over her.

She looked around, groaning despite herself at the pain thrumming through her head, shoulder and neck. It was difficult to tell where she was. The space was small and cramped and dark. Much too small to be the cell she and the Doctor had shared earlier. Nor was it the tunnel.

River managed to get to her hands and knees and crawled around as best she could, trying to take some measure of her current location. It was a tiny rectangular room, roughly the size of a closet. Which made sense since there appeared to be various boxes and supplies stacked up against the back wall.

Still on her knees, she tried the door. The handle turned so it wasn't locked, but the door opened out and it seemed something heavy was blocking it, holding it stuck closed.

River leaned against the door feeling frustrated and very tired. She wasn't sure how much blood she'd lost but the edges of her vision were fuzzy and she felt nauseous. Whoever it was had definitely been determined to incapacitate her. She suspected her head injury was no minor thing.

The sudden thought of what might have happened to the others completely erased any worry she felt for herself. A trap had clearly been set. The lights had been tampered with along with the grated opening they'd been trying to access. And someone had been lying in wait for them to turn back. Her concern for her companions gave her a second wind and she climbed unsteadily to her feet, angrily rattling the door against whatever had been placed against it.

"When I get out of here..." River growled, violent thoughts filling her mind.

A wave of dizziness overcame her then and she had to lean all her weight against the door. She watched as blood continued to drip from the wound on her head.

She slid back down to the floor, drained of energy, thinking to herself, _if I get out of here_.

* * *

The Doctor wasn't paying attention to what was happening with the panel at first. Instead he was a few steps further ahead in the dark tunnel, shining the flashlight around on the ground. Shards of some type of broken material littered the ground. He squinted at the debris, then shone the torch upward to the ceiling of the tunnel.

The lights. Someone had broken out the lights here.

"This panel's stuck!" Turlough's panicked voice caused him to spin around. Both Turlough and Haven seemed to be trying to pull the mesh grating free with no success. "It wasn't like this when we left it. It looks as though someone purposely jammed it up!" Turlough gestured helplessly, looking up at the Doctor with disbelief.

The Doctor sighed and joined them where they were knelt before the access panel, dim light shining through from the other side. "It would seem that someone was laying a trap." he observed. The grating had been bent and warped, as if someone had hammered at it, bending it all out of shape. He felt around in his pockets for some sort of prying tool but came up with nothing. It appeared whoever had been responsible for capturing them earlier had relieved him of any such implements.

Turlough started to pound his fist against the stuck panel. Trying anything to knock it free.

"Wait." Haven said suddenly. "I have that knife!" She pulled a large pocket knife from her jeans pocket. She passed it to Turlough who unfolded it and began prying at the edges of the mesh panel. After a few moments, a corner finally popped inward. Turlough sighed in relief. "Looks like it's coming loose."

The Doctor suddenly became keenly aware of River's absence from the group. He had seen her right behind them only moments before. Now she was gone.

He stood slowly, his eyes narrowed. What sort of trouble was that woman causing now. "River." he whispered fiercely, hoping she was just around the corner, watching their backs.

Only silence answered.

He swallowed, a bad feeling coming over him. His mind raced trying to remember how long it had actually been since he'd seen River standing in this very spot. He crept toward the corner. "River!" he called, no longer caring about whispering.

Still no reply.

As he stepped around the corner, the first thing he saw was the puddle of blood on the floor, illuminated by the beam of his flashlight. Adrenaline coursed through him and he immediately feared the worst. It was quite a lot of blood.

And then, something on the wall directly to his right caught his eye.

He aimed the torch at it and gasped at what he saw.

A message, written with someone's finger dipped in the blood. "Come get her."

He looked up, further into the brightly lit tunnel they'd only just walked through. There wasn't a being in sight. But there was something else. Drag marks. All the way down the tunnel, leading away from them were bloody drag marks.

River was hurt, perhaps badly. And now someone had her.

The Doctor hadn't felt this sort of fear for another person in a long time. It nearly took his breath away. All he wanted to do was find her and make sure she was alright. Little else mattered aside from that.

He quickly made his way back to the others who were making slow but steady progress with the panel.

The Doctor cleared his throat, causing them both to look up. "Turlough, you and Haven keep working at that. I'm going back to find River."

Turlough looked alarmed at his tone and Haven's brown eyes widened. "What do you mean _find River_?"she demanded, climbing to her feet. "What's happened?" Turlough stood as well. They both looked terribly concerned.

The Doctor held up both hands in a halting gesture, in no mood to argue. "I need the two of you to go back to the TARDIS." He instructed, at the edge of his patience. "Don't argue. Just get that access panel open and _go_."

He turned to leave. "But what about Mercer?" Turlough demanded. "We still don't know if it's safe. She could be there waiting for us."

The Doctor turned back, his face grim. "Mercer is no longer in the TARDIS." he told them with a certainty he felt to the core of his being. "Mercer has River."

Haven gasped and clutched Turlough's arm anxiously. The Doctor pointed at the grating, his voice firm. "Open that and then go. River and I..." he trailed off as something icy stabbed at his hearts. "We'll be there soon."

And then he turned and headed back the way they'd come, following the trail of blood.

He had no plan in mind as he ran through the tunnel. He certainly didn't have a weapon on him, but then, he never did.

The blood trail went right past the point in the tunnel that they'd entered after escaping the prison. He frowned, remembering what had happened between River and himself back in the cell. He'd allowed his mind to get muddled after their little imbroglio and he hadn't been paying close enough attention. He drove his mind away from that line of thinking. Away from the guilt of being responsible.

The drag marks went to the very end of the tunnel, culminating at a hatch with a ladder that led down. He shone the light down the hatch and didn't see anyone around.

After a half second's hesitation, he began to climb down quickly.

At the bottom, he saw fresher looking blood and one of River's boots. His eyes narrowed. He suspected that River hadn't so much been carried down the ladder as thrown carelessly down the hatch, likely injuring her further.

He felt anger burning in him where only concern had lived before. Whoever had done this... they better hope she was still alive.

He was standing in a subterranean corridor and the drag marks led off to the left, right up to a closed door blocked with a sturdy shelf.

"River!" he shouted, not thinking straight. He headed over to pull the shelving away. He was so panicked that the thought hadn't occurred to him that the perpetrator might be right behind him. "I'm right here and I'm going to get you out."

Before he could move the obstacle, he felt a blade at his throat and heard a woman's voice over his right shoulder. "Silly Doctor." Mercer chuckled. "How do you think you're going to do that?"

* * *

Haven stood blinking, watching the Doctor run off back the way they'd just came. She was more scared now than she'd been since meeting up with the Doctor. And it wasn't because of wicked Guardians of Protection or murderous androids. It had been the look on the Doctor's face. He was nearly unhinged with worry and it was the first time Haven had seen such a look of hopeless dread in his eyes.

Haven swallowed, tears welling up. "Turlough..." she didn't have to finish the sentence.

He passed the knife to her. "Keep working." he commanded, heading after the Doctor.

Numbly, Haven fell back onto her knees and began prying at the grate again. After a few more pokes and prods with the blade, the panel finally popped loose, clattering noisily to the floor on the other side. That was the moment that Turlough returned.

His face was drained of color and he was chewing on his lip. He looked terrified.

Haven stood and rushed over to him. "What is it? What did you find?"

Turlough's voice was shaky when he finally answered. "Blood. Far too much blood... and a message."

Haven didn't even look back at their now open escape route. She grabbed Turlough's arm and tugged. "Come on."

Even with the warning, she was not prepared for the sight that greeted her around the corner. Just as he had said: Far too much blood.

And then there was the ominous message. _Come get her._

Haven's whole body was trembling, her mind trying to assimilate this new information. It must have all happened so fast. River had been bringing up the rear of the group only minutes before. Now they were firmly ensconced in yet another nightmare.

Up ahead in that surreal amber light, she could see bloody drag marks all the way down the tunnel. The Doctor was nowhere in sight.

There was no question of going back to the TARDIS now. There were no words spoken at all in fact. They just ran, following the grisly trail as the Doctor must have done.

At the end of the tunnel, there was some sort of hatch with a ladder leading down into darkness.

Haven started to speak before Turlough shushed her with a silent gesture.

Voices drifted up through the hatch. It was the Doctor and a woman.

"Listen, I know who you are and I think I know what you want." the Doctor's voice was reasonable as ever. "But if River is injured, I must see her immediately. Just let me make sure she's alright and you can do whatever you'd like with me."

"My, how very chivalrous of you." the female voice purred. "But Professor Song is my only leverage at this point. I'm not going to just hand her back without getting something in return."

Turlough and Haven exchanged wild-eyed looks. "What do we do?" Haven hissed in a quiet but panicked voice.

Turlough's eyes narrowed, like he was thinking of a suitable solution. Below the exchange grew more heated.

"You already have a knife to my throat." the Doctor snapped, clearly finished being polite. "I'm not sure how much more leverage you need than that."

"A _knife_!" Haven gasped, now thoroughly freaked out. "She has a fucking knife!" She was overwhelmed now with panic, her fight or flight response quickly taking over.

"Just keep still and let me think." Turlough soothed. They were knelt down near the opening in the floor. He had one hand on her shoulder, offering a modicum of comfort but she continued to tremble.

"The key Doctor. I want the key to your ship along with simple instructions on how to fly it." the woman demanded in that same overly friendly manner.

"There's nothing simple about flying a TARDIS." the Doctor countered, still sounding calm but far more hateful than he'd sounded before. "I'll need to go with you. To show you. And I'm willing to do so as long as you leave my friends alone. Show me that River is alright and we can go right now."

The woman laughed. She actually laughed. It was a nice sounding laugh, infectious even. Like a good friend had just made a witty remark. "Oh Doctor. You aren't the one running this show. You don't get to make demands." She spoke to him almost flirtatiously. "Just one slip of the knife and I can slit your throat from ear to ear."

Haven could feel bile rising in her throat. The bitch sounded just crazy enough to do it too.

"But then you wouldn't know how to fly my ship." he responded sharply, not showing even a little bit of fear to his captor. "And all this will have been for nothing."

As her eyes acclimated to peering down through the hatch, Haven could just make out their shapes in the dimness below. The Doctor appeared to be on his knees with Mercer pressed against his back, holding the blade of an enormous knife to his throat.

Haven blinked, one corner of the mind numbing panic lifting for a split second. A _knife_.

She looked down at her hand and found that inexplicably, she'd made her way down the tunnel unknowingly still clutching the large blade in her hand.

"Well I have a fucking knife too." she murmured softly.

Turlough didn't seem to hear her. He just squeezed her shoulder comfortingly and continued to look down at the spectacle below.

"If I have to kill you, I will just have to find another way." Mercer was saying casually. "And quite frankly I've grown impatient. You know, my daddy always used to say that I was short-sighted. That I had a one track mind and when I became fixated on something, I thought only in the moment."

Suddenly the Doctor cried out in pain. "Oops. Slipped." Mercer cooed sweetly.

Haven's hand gripped the knife firmly. She could feel her heart beating in each fingertip.

"It's just a scratch this time." Mercer reassured him. "But if you continue trying to talk your way out of this..."

"Please." the Doctor pleaded, finally sounding properly scared. Perhaps finally realizing that he was dealing with an absolute crazy person. "Please just tell me if River is alright."

There was that friendly little laugh again. "No." she told him simply.

The woman's cruelty was mind blowing. She was unwilling to even let the Doctor know if River was alive or dead. It was clear she wanted complete control of the situation and seemed to be taking great pleasure in torturing him.

Haven thought back to her mother's scared voice on the digital chronicle. On the day she knew she was going to die. This bitch down below had been the reason for that. She had been responsible for the death of an entire generation of passengers. Had orphaned hundreds of children.

And now she had hurt two of Haven's friends. The friends that had watched out for her and saved her life on numerous occasions. That had put themselves in harm's way again and again.

Haven's eyes narrowed, her grip on the knife tightened.

Fight or flight. Fight or flight

"Your ship Doctor." Mercer prompted, coldness finally leaking in. "Tell me how to operate it and tell me now."

Haven felt sweat break out on her forehead as it finally dawned on her.

Mercer would kill him no matter what. It was why she wanted the information here. So she could dispatch with him and head back to the TARDIS unencumbered, unthreatened.

Turlough seemed to realize it at the same time. The look of horror in his eyes was what pushed Haven over the edge.

A haze seemed to cover the world around her for just a moment and her mother's last words echoed in her mind.

 _I must find someone to believe me. Because I'm frightened._

Fight or flight. Fight or flight.

And with that, Haven jumped down into the hatch, bypassing the ladder entirely. She landed right on top of Anaïs Mercer, knocking her away from the Doctor. A knife clattered to the floor.


	26. Chapter 26

River had regained consciousness in stops and starts.

She had been vaguely aware of being carried through the tunnel, the sickly amber light familiar to her even in such a state.

Her eyelids had flickered all the way open at one point and she'd looked up into the Doctor's troubled blue eyes. His strong arms cradled her, his forehead creased with concern. "You're going to be just fine." he'd whispered.

After another chunk of lost time, River's eyes opened to a different kind of familiar yellow light. This light was more golden and it seemed to radiate all around her. And she could feel the light somehow. Feel it as if it was energy flowing through her.

She realized she was laying on her back in the TARDIS sick bay and that the Doctor was leaning over her, very close. Much closer than he typically felt comfortable with.

And his lips were pressed against her brow.

And the golden light surrounded both of them, swirling like smoke or mist. The golden light was coming from the Doctor. Coursing from him into her.

By the time she realized what he was doing, it was too late to stop him.

He was healing her injuries with regeneration energy. She'd opened her mouth to protest and lost consciousness one final time.

She was sitting up in her bed now, drinking tea that he'd brought for her. Quite frankly, it tasted awful but she didn't have the hearts to criticize his effort. He sat in a chair pulled up close to the bed, telling her all that had transpired.

How he'd tracked her down and been held at knifepoint. How he'd tried reasoning with Anaïs Mercer before realizing how bonkers she really was.

As he talked, River studied the shallow cut on the left side of his neck where Mercer had nicked him as a warning and felt anger rise within her. That woman had hurt the Doctor, more than just physically. The vengeful side of River wanted to hurt Mercer back. But there was apparently no need for that. Not ever.

Because Haven had killed her.

River was horrified to hear the news, only worried for Haven's well-being, not Mercer's. She was assured that Haven was significantly calmer than she'd been in the immediate aftermath of the unfortunate incident.

Turlough had taken her to get cleaned up and according to the Doctor, they were now relaxing in the library having a drink.

"He really watches out for her." the Doctor commented, almost like a proud father would.

River smiled in response. "Thankfully, it seems _she_ was watching out for _you_ today." she murmured.

The Doctor's smile disappeared and he looked down at his hands. "It wasn't wrong what she did." he said softly. "But I do wish she hadn't needed to."

River could only nod in agreement. Anaïs Mercer had deserved what she'd gotten. But Haven would live with what she'd done the rest of her life.

There was a tap at the door and Turlough poked his head in. He grinned when he saw River was sitting up.

"Look who's awake." he greeted.

River sighed, setting her tea aside. "Yes. Let's just hope this idiot hasn't zapped too much of his regeneration energy." She gave the Doctor some serious disapproving side-eye.

The Doctor cleared his throat. "You needed it." he explained simply.

Turlough smirked, glancing side long at the Doctor. "Oh I have a feeling he would have gladly used every bit of his regeneration energy to make sure _you_ were alright."

River raised an eyebrow as the Doctor fidgeted, clearly uncomfortable.

Turlough crossed his arms and winked at her. "Don't let him downplay it. He was mad with worry. All he seemed to care about was you being okay."

River felt herself blush like a school girl, thoroughly annoyed to feel so pleased at his words.

Fortunately Turlough changed the subject. "Doctor... is it ready yet?"

The Doctor stood, suddenly energized and clapped his hands together. "It is." he answered, smiling widely. Turlough gave a whoop of excitement and without another word, ran out of the room.

"What's going on?" River wanted to know.

The Doctor turned toward her, a sly grin in place. "Turlough wanted to do something special for Haven. To take her mind off of... things. So I convinced the TARDIS to create a special place, just for her."

"I think that's very nice." River said, truly meaning it. "What sort of place?"

There was mischief in his eyes. "Would you like to go see?"

River smiled and held out a hand to be helped up. She was only slightly unsteady on her feet now but the Doctor supported her as they made their way down the corridor. For once, she let him.

She had no pain, no remaining injury at all. She mostly just felt sluggish. A small price to pay after nearly being murdered.

When they came to a door, the Doctor paused with one hand on the knob. "Cadence always called Haven Hotaru." he explained. "It's Japanese for firefly. Haven told Turlough she'd always been fascinated by them, but had never seen one outside of a book." He raised his eyebrows and nodded toward the door.

They stepped from the sterile and stark whiteness of the corridor out onto a homey back porch overlooking a stunning country garden. It was night time and out in the yard, and as far as the eye could see, fireflies flitted around, blinking on and blinking off. Turlough and Haven were already out there in the garden observing them with wonder.

River gasped at the spectacle. It was like they were in the back of an old country manor. There were trees and flowers and even stars in the night sky.

The Doctor helped River to sit on the step beside him.

"Doctor this is beautiful." she told him, shaking her head.

She realized he was watching her, his brow furrowed, as if he was trying to decide something.

After a moment, he seemed to make up his mind. "Turlough's right." he admitted. "I was terribly worried about you."

She looked down at her hands, strangely shy under his scrutiny. "It's good to be worried about." she murmured.

"I-I thought I would never see you again." he continued in a low, nervous voice.

"Even if I'd died in that closet, you'd still be seeing me again... some day." she pointed out flippantly.

The Doctor scoffed and shook his head. "You really are terribly exasperating, you know that?" He sighed and reached over to take hold of her hand.

She grinned and leaned against him. "It's what you admire about me." she teased.

The Doctor had her hand in his and was gently tracing her knuckles with the thumb of his other hand. "That's what you'd like to believe, isn't it?" He sounded amused.

River chuckled. "No wait... don't tell me. It's my sparkling personality?"

The Doctor seemed to study her for a moment before replying. "Actually, Professor Song, what I admire most about you are the aspects of your character you seem so eager to hide from the rest of the universe." And then he gently kissed her hand.

River's hearts stuttered and she finally looked up at him, blinking in surprise. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

He smiled his charming smile. "It means that for all your bravado and phony nonchalance, there's a woman in there who cares very deeply for others. Who stands up for the underdog. And has a good heart."

River felt exposed at his words. And very vulnerable. And it pissed her off.

"Hearts." she grumbled in response, pulling her hand away and clasping both together in her lap.

The Doctor laughed easily. "See what I mean? _Such_ a phony."

Before she could formulate a witty comeback, music began to play. Out of nowhere it seemed.

A cover of _Can't Help Falling in Love_ , sung by a female artist and a bit jazzier than Elvis's classic version.

Turlough and Haven, who appeared to be chasing each other all around the garden came together suddenly under a weeping willow tree and embraced.

River raised an eyebrow and gave the Doctor an accusing look. "A bit heavy-handed." she remarked.

The Doctor gestured innocently. "This certainly isn't _me_." he insisted. He squinted up into the trees, from which the music seemed to be emanating. "It would appear the TARDIS is something of a romantic." He bumped his shoulder into hers and she couldn't help but laugh, still not sure she believed him.

Turlough was now twirling a giggling Haven around out in the grass, as if on an imaginary dance floor. They looked so happy, so young and very much in love.

River watched them, feeling a bittersweet melancholy wash over her as she listened to the song.

 _Like a river flows, surely to the sea. Darling so it goes, some things are meant to be._

River sighed. Love was such a pain in the ass.

So unpredictable. So inconvenient. So paralyzing.

She gave her hand back to the Doctor who grabbed it possessively, just as Turlough kissed Haven on the forehead beneath the weeping willow.

So beautiful.

* * *

The Doctor cleared his throat, gazing down at the stranger beside him. This stranger who knew him better than anyone. Who he now felt he'd known all his lives. Yet somehow not at all.

He turned toward her and tucked a strand of curly hair, still damp from the shower behind one ear. "Earlier." he began in a low voice. "When I didn't know what had happened to you. When that woman was threatening me."

She looked back at him, brow furrowed and nodded for him to go on.

He chuckled, nervous for what he was about to reveal. "I had one silly thought that just kept popping into my mind." He gently stroked her cheek and she closed her eyes at the contact. "I thought, I'd blown my last chance at kissing you properly."

River's eyes popped open in surprise and an appealing grin spread slowly over her face. "Properly?" she chuckled. She leaned in and brushed the front of his hair away from his forehead affectionately, her eyes locked on his. "And what exactly would that be like?"

When their lips met this time, it was very softly. There were no ulterior motives, no fury or pent up sexual frustration behind it. This was the sort of romantic kiss that happened in old black and white movies. Heartfelt but pure. And the Doctor felt her melt against him.

The kiss lasted for a bit and when it ended, the Doctor was pleased to see that River was actually blushing.

"A bit like that, I should think." he laughed softly, responding to her earlier question.

The song had ended and a new one began now. A man's voice singing this time.

River's eyes narrowed and then she groaned. "Oh now Doctor."

He blinked. "What is it?"

She fixed him with a look. "Seriously. You're going to tell me you're not doing this." She pointed upwards dramatically. "It's your favorite song." She raised her eyebrows and adjusted her skirt. "A bit hokey if you ask me."

The Doctor was puzzled. "I don't believe I've heard this song before now." He told her honestly.

Her face remained skeptical. "Groovy Kind of Love by Phil Collins?" she prompted.

He just shrugged. It didn't ring a bell.

Out in the garden, Haven was leaning back against the trunk of the willow tree now. It appeared Turlough was snogging her but it was difficult to be sure as they were half hidden from view by the tree's canopy.

"They seem to like it." the Doctor pointed out.

River hooked her arms around his neck then, forcing him to pay attention to only her. "That's because they clearly have terrible taste too." And then she pulled him in for another kiss.

A soft breeze blew through the trees and crickets chirped in the bushes. He found he was enjoying the hokey song quite a bit. Terrible taste be damned.

River pulled away and leaned her forehead against his. Her voice broke when she said, "You do realize that you won't remember any of this, don't you?"

He slowly sat back a bit to study her face. "Care to elaborate?"

She wouldn't meet his gaze. "This wasn't meant to happen." She replied staring down at her hands in her lap. "I was never meant to meet you at this point in your lives." She finally met his eyes. "The future you was always adamant that our first meeting came much later for you."

The certainty in her words were sobering and they brought him back to himself. He pulled away from her completely and sat up straighter, once more looking out over the simulated garden. "Right," he said at length.

She sighed, as if she were disappointed that a spell had been broken. That reality had returned to reclaim them. She returned her attention to the view before them. "It really is beautiful though." Her voice sounded sad now. "I for one will never forget any of it."

"Come on." The Doctor stood and reached a hand down to help her up. "I think it's time we found out where exactly the androids have brought us." He kept his voice light and ignored the rush he felt when she placed his hand in hers and hauled her to her feet just as the song ended. "We still have a job to do here. And we still have to find Cadence."

River's face was a war of emotions but her steely determination won out in the end. She nodded her agreement, all traces of sadness having vanished.

As they walked toward the exit that would return them to the corridor, he leaned in conspiratorially. "And don't believe for a moment that I could completely forget any of this."

She stopped walking and gave him a skeptical look.

He raised an eyebrow. "For instance, I believe I've worked out why that will be my favorite song."

River looked like she wanted to argue, but instead started to laugh. She laughed quite hard and when she'd calmed down some, she commented, "I for one can't think of any other reason."

* * *

Everything had been hazy and surreal when Haven had jumped down through the hatch. Her senses seemed to be both dulled and finely honed all at the same time. It all happened so fast, but for her, the events seemed to play out in slow motion. Later, she would mostly remember the sounds.

The oof sound Mercer made when Haven landed on top of her. The sound of Mercer's knife clattering to the cement floor. The Doctor and Turlough's panicked voices telling them to stop, telling Mercer to get off of Haven. The snarling, almost inhuman sounds the evil woman made as they struggled.

The gasp of surprise when the blade had entered her chest…

Stabbing Anaïs Mercer hadn't been a calculated, conscious decision. Haven had been operating in survival mode and had acted on her instincts once it became clear she would be overpowered if she didn't.

When the threat had passed with Mercer's dying breath, when Haven realized what she'd done, she'd dropped the knife and scrambled backwards into the wall. Her shaking hands, now covered in blood went to her face in horror.

Turlough was crouched beside her immediately, looking alarmed at the sight of blood on her. "Are you wounded? Did she hurt you?" When she didn't respond, he began to look her over for injuries.

The Doctor made his way to them, looking disorientated, stunned at the turn of events. "Is she alright?"

Haven found her voice then. "It isn't me you should be worried about." she sounded almost normal. "Check on River. She lost a lot of blood." Then she'd turned her face away and threw up everywhere.

River had indeed lost a lot of blood. By the time they'd all got back to the TARDIS, it really didn't look like River was going to make it. The Doctor took her to the sick bay and checked for vital signs while Haven stood watch with Turlough, her teeth chattering from raw nerves. The Doctor's face was pale when he turned to face them and told them to leave the room.

Turlough had taken her to her bedroom and suggested she clean herself up. She felt numb as the water beat down over her. She supposed there was only so much a person's mind could take. He'd waited patiently while she showered and even helped her get dressed and comb through her wet hair. There wasn't anything intrusive or embarrassing about it. It felt perfectly natural having him be a part of such intimate activities.

Their spirits had been lifted at the news of River's complete recovery. Haven didn't entirely understand what 'regeneration energy' was but she had been so pleased to see River alive and resting comfortably in her own bed that she hadn't asked for the details.

Haven and Turlough ended up back in the drafty old library where he'd built them a fire in an ornately tiled fireplace. They cuddled up on an ancient looking rug, her seated between his legs and leaned back against his chest. She quickly drained the glass of wine he'd given her and then exhaled loudly.

After a moment of silently contemplating her empty glass, she murmured, "I killed someone today."

Turlough's voice was gentle. "You saved the Doctor's life today. And possibly River's." He rested his chin on her shoulder. "And you stopped a terrible person who was responsible for the death of your parents and many others."

She cleared her throat and set her glass down, considering his words. "I suppose River would say I saved her the trouble."

Turlough chuckled. "You're not wrong."

He'd excused himself shortly thereafter for a few moments and returned looking somewhat mischievous.

"What's going on?" she asked suspiciously as he helped her to her feet.

"I wanted to show you something and the Doctor just informed me that the TARDIS is ready for you to see it." He sounded extremely pleased with himself and she couldn't help but smile.

"Okay then. Lead the way." she declared, following him out to the corridor.

Haven hadn't been in any way prepared for what was behind the door he opened for her.

It was like stepping outside onto someone's back porch at night. There was a beautiful garden filled with all manner of flowers, a manicured lawn and a variety of trees. The temperature was perfect despite it being night time. She stared up in awe at the starry sky, speechless.

"You're looking in the wrong place." he complained. "Out there." he instructed, pointing out into the garden.

And that was when she saw them.

Hotaru. Fireflies, blinking lazily in the dark. There must have been dozens of them, drifting over the garden. She gasped and ran from the porch with Turlough close on her heels.

Out in the yard, Haven stood in one place and turned in a circle. "Is this real?" she wondered, taking it all in.

Turlough laughed. "It is." Before she could ask, he interrupted, "And don't ask me how. I understand quite a lot about the dimensional characteristics of the TARDIS." He sighed and looked around, clearly incredulous himself. "But some mysteries do remain."

Haven reached out and managed to capture one of the insects between cupped hands. She opened her hands just enough to peek inside, delighted to see the creature's tiny light still flashing on and off.

"It's like magic." she breathed.

Turlough approached and forced her hands open, setting the insect free. "Bioluminescence." he corrected with a playful smirk.

She narrowed her eyes. "What'd you do that for?"

He tapped her on the shoulder and murmured, "Tag, you're it." before running off into the trees.

As she pursued him, she became aware that they were no longer alone. The Doctor and River sat beside each other on the steps. She payed them no mind as she chased Turlough all around, feeling like a hyperactive child but not particularly caring who saw.

Haven had just stopped to catch her breath when the music started. She looked all around her, brow furrowed. It was as if the song was emanating from the trees.

Wise men say only fools rush in…

Turlough stepped out from the cover of some low hanging branches just then and grinned at her.

...but I can't help fallin in love with you.

They both walked forward wordlessly, like the song was some supernatural force drawing them together. They met just under the tree's canopy and he wrapped his arms around her, smiling.

"Oh, are we through playing 'tag' now?" she murmured, hooking her arms around his neck and looking up into his eyes.

"Well you've definitely caught me." he assured her, his voice soft.

Haven gazed up at him for a moment before standing on her tiptoes and kissing him sweetly.

"And what did I do to deserve that?" he asked when the kiss ended, sounding pleased.

She smiled and pressed herself against him. "You remembered." she whispered. "About the fireflies."


End file.
